Cherry Syndrome
by ChikaMikk10
Summary: Strangers are a sign of change. And not always a bad one. Harry knew what this meant...Edward Elric was a change...a change to his newly aquired peace and life as he knew it. Yet another chaotic school year was about to begin. HpFma AnbuPair sequel RoyEd
1. Five Abnormalities

I AM BACK WITH….STUFF!!! xDD yes in the end I decided I couldn't be bothered to study for my exams giving me a lovely chance to do this…write a prologue-type thingy. Im guessing you guys are celebrating that Im a lazy fuck :P

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Prologue

**Cherry Syndrome**

Harry threw himself back onto the bed with a sigh. The dinner was finally over and like all of his uncle's friendly, suck up to the boss dinners it was insanely boring. However there was something different about Mr. Elric. To start he was not Vernon Dursley's boss at all. No, he could only dream of the day when he would be so high in the ranks that he was allowed to have Edward Elric as his boss. It turned out that he had just moved in down the road. Apparently he lived alone in number 7 Privet Drive just across from Mrs. Figg.

After Mrs. Figg turned out to have a connection to the wizard world Harry was weary of his neighbors. He could never tell whether they were involved or not and if they were what side they were on. After all he was surrounded by strange neighbors and Edward Elric, his new neighbor was no exception.

The FIRST thing Harry had noticed about him was of course his eyes. They were golden unlike any eyes he had ever seen before. And there was wisdom to them. Judging by his height the man could be no older than twenty. He seemed terribly young to be in such a high position. However when Harry had questioned him Edward had merely told him that he was a prodigy.

That had been the SECOND thing. Edward had never said his age and what was a child prodigy doing living on their own in a place like this?

The THIRD abnormality was his gloves. Edward Elric wore white gloves…and they were never removed. Not even when Dudley had scalded him with hot soup. He had been reaching over the table and a knocked the soup directly over Edward's right hand. Everyone had gone into an uproar and the Dursleys' spent the rest of the night apologizing every 5 minutes. But Dudley was never lectured or sent one single dirt look…how annoying.

Dudley's clumsiness had however lead Harry to his FOURTH abnormality. Edward Elric had not even winced when hot soup was poured onto his hand. He may have been wearing the gloves but they would serve as no protection. They were very thin gloves.

The FIFTH thing on Harry's list was the strangest one to him. It was what had caused all his questions and pondering in the first place…Edward Elric had not taken his eyes off him since Harry had opened the door. His eyes never looked at the scar but the first look in his face had been recognition. Mr. Elric knew him from somewhere, wonder where?

Harry tore his jeans off and crept under his bed covers. He lay his head on the pillow and shut his eyes, trying to fall asleep. Now, it was at times like these that Harry Potter usually remembered random things. However this time the words were not quite random.

_I did." Luna answered quietly. "But the future can change and as you know nothings ever sure…And there's always more, because you're alive." _

Harry pulled out a small piece of paper from beneath the pillow. It was the photograph his friends had given him the year before. They were all still waving and mucking about the way they had when he'd first seen the picture. With a small smile he flipped it over to find the words Luna had written on it the day they had returned home on the Hogwarts Express.

Good Luck with your summer….and your aunt and uncle. If you see any Nargles let me know, apparently they enjoy suburbs.

Luna

P.S Strangers are a sign of change. And not always a bad one

Harry groaned in frustration.

"I hate when you do this to me Luna." He muttered to himself, flipping the page back over.

_Strangers are a sign of change. And not always a bad one_

He knew what this meant...Edward Elric was a change, and yet another chaotic year was about to begin.

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Is it worth a review....please?


	2. Battles, War and Curiosity

Ah yes the smell of a delayed chapter…enjoy that.

I have many many things that I want to say to you and many many orders I can put it in so sorry if it turns out retarted.

1st: It says Roy will be in the story because A. RoyEd seems to be winning the poll and B. Roy will in fact turn up in later chapters patients people

2nd: the one who is deciding the pairing is you not me!!!!!

3rd: The pairing for this story will not be as obvious as with the Anbu Pair they will develop much slower. Romance is not the main theme of this story…but it is a very big one *smirks*

4th: Please don't hate the story if it doesn't turn out the pairing you want

(I have never had so much grief over a pairing)

Disclaimer: I do not own anything, Ive tried nicking it but I got caught *pouts*

Chapter I

**Cherry Syndrome**

Harry was pulled from his sleep at around six 'o' clock in the morning by an insistent tapping at his bedroom window. He lay lazily in his bed trying to will the annoying noise away but when it did not he rolled over. Perched on his window sill glaring bitterly at him was Hedwig. Harry jumped to his feet, suddenly completely awake when he saw the piece of parchment tied to the owl's foot. He rushed over the window and wrenched it open. Hedwig flew into the room and to the top of the cupboard. Harry sighed, she was upset about being left out in the cold, foggy night. Recently, anyone that went out at night would see nothing but a heavy blanket of fog no matter where they went. The streets had an unsettling feeling about them and the people that walked them were growing less by the day.

"I'm sorry Hedwig." Harry pleaded looking wide eyes at her. "Next time I'll wake up right away." A few minutes of coaxing later Harry had two new letters in his hand. He opened them quickly in anticipation. However his excitement dropped. The letters were from Sirius and Hermione. If Harry was honest with himself they were not who he wanted to hear from.

He picked up a letter he'd written before he went to sleep and growled, ripping it into shreds. That had been his fifth try. They weren't going to answer.

The letter from Hermione was the second thing he picked up.

_Dear Harry,_

_How are you? I hope you've stayed out of trouble over the summer. My family and I spent the summer in Italy. It is really beautiful here however recently there has been some awful weather. I heard that Ron and his family were invited to stay at Fleur's house in France for the summer. Bill and she seem to be growing really close. _

_As to your question, I haven't had much access to my magic books recently but I recognized the name Elric. There was a book I read in Muggle School once. It was a fantasy book about alchemy. It wasn't the kind of alchemy we know, it was very different. I believe the author was a man named Alphonse Heidrich-Elric. It was written around the 1940s. I hope that will help you. _

_Take care and I'll see you soon._

_Hermione_

Harry sighed at her antics. What was she expecting him to do? Commit a mass murder? But Heidrich Elric could not possibly be the person he was looking for. It was the wrong name and even if it were merely a pen name Edward Elric was too young. But if the book did have some sort of relevance it would do for a start.

Harry threw one last glance at the letter before he cast it aside. He kneeled down onto the floor and pulled at one of the loose floorboards. There was a small space beneath the floorboards where Harry stored all his possessions that would otherwise be confiscated. Among these was a small pocket of muggle pounds. They had been a just in case present from Hermione a few years ago. Harry had never thought that he would need them but had of course kept them anyway. He grinned to himself. It should be enough to buy a simple book.

It was well into the afternoon when Harry finally returned to Privet Drive. His day so far had consisted of him struggling his way out of Vernon Dursley's grip and into town. Despite him only having bad memories of his muggle times, seeing everything after six years of wizardry was somehow comforting. He was overcome by a wave of nostalgia.

He did succeed in buying the desired book however it took much longer than expected. The book, _The Tales of an Alchemist_, was a very popular book when first published. But when the author died it seemed the book died with him. There was not a single copy to be found after 1941. The only place that had a copy was a small book shop that was safely tucked away in a corner. The shop could only be found after Harry followed many winding roads and alleys.

Harry stared down at the cover. So he had the book….but what now? Did he really have the nerve to walk up to Edward Elric and ask him what his connection to this man was? His eyes wandered down the street. Number 7 was just in sight. The garden was slightly less cared for than the other houses on the road. The windows were all thrust open, it seemed that he was airing the house. Unconsciously, he found himself wandering towards the house. When Harry noticed this he shrugged his shoulders and took the rest of the stretch with a determined walk. After all it never hurts to ask.

When he reached the front door Harry hesitated only for a moment before he pushed the doorbell with a decisive frown on his face. But the person who opened the door…..

"Edward have you cut your hair?"

….. Wasn't quite who he thought it would be. The boy in front of him was the spitting image of Edward Elric. The only difference was that this boy's hair was not the same vibrant blonde that Edward's was. The boy in front of him laughed.

"I've always been told we look alike but I didn't think it was that much." Harry blinked. His eyes were darker too. "If you're looking for my brother he's inside reading." He smiled warmly, inviting him in. "I'm sorry about the mess though, we're just unpacking.

Harry cocked his head to one side. Hadn't Edward said that he lived alone? And who was this boy? He could barely be older that he himself was. Harry matched his step to his.

"Pardon me for asking but who are you?" He questioned cautiously. The boy's eyes widened when he realised he had not introduced himself.

"Oh sorry, that was rude of me." He bowed slightly, when he stood up straight again the comforting smile had returned to his face. "My name is Alphonse Elric. I'm Edwards's younger brother."

Harry let slip a small gasp. Alphonse…there was that name again.

"Is something wrong?"

Harry jumped, having lost himself in thought.

"Ah no everything is fine." They were in front of an archway now. When Harry peered inside the first thing he saw was the books. There were mountains of them. They buried and covered almost all the furniture. In the corner of the room perched a small, old fashioned TV. It was turned on, blaring the muggle news across the room. Just a few metres away from the TV was a royal blue sofa and sprawled across it with a book on his face was Edward Elric.

"Ah it looks like he's asleep." Alphonse walked up to his brother and poked him gently. "Nii-san, nii-san there's someone here to see you."

Edward Elric stirred, pulling the book from his eyes. After blinking the sleep from his eyes he looked around. His eyes fell on Harry and he grinned.

"Harry Potter. What gives me the pleasure?" He said sleepily. Harry stole a glance at the pile of books closest to Edward. It was a pile of black notebooks and with a closer look they turned out to be travel logues. Harry frowned in confusion.

"I just thought I'd drop by to say hello. I was at the book shop earlier and I happened to find this." Harry pulled the book from the plastic bag and showed the cover to him. "Were you related in anyway?" Edward merely smiled in reply.

"If you're hoping to discover something about my family with that book you're going about it the wrong way." He laughed cheerfully. The frown on Harry's face deepened at Edward's reaction.

"Nii-san don't be rude." Alphonse chastised. "I'm sorry, he can be a bit rude sometimes." He excused. Edward threw his hands up as if in surrender.

"Fine, fine yes I do know it. It was written by a friend of the family." Edward sent a knowing glace towards his brother before he continued. "That's all I know." He continued mockingly.

Harry did not believe him and judging by the look on Edward's and Alphonse's faces they both knew it. He sighed and put the book back into the bag. It had been foolish of him to think that he would get information this easily.

"_The fog that has been resting on London for the past few weeks sadly seems to not be moving, the weather will remain to be cold throughout the week but hopefully it will clear up in a few days. Up North…." _

Harry picked up those few lines of the weather report and sighed. The awful weather was not going anywhere. He had been hoping that the weather would clear up at least for the last few days of the holidays.

Edward had also heard the report. He rolled idly onto his side and almost glared at the screen.

"Looks like your friends left more work than I thought they had." He complained loudly. It took a while for Harry to register that Edward was talking to him but once he did his mind worked like wild fire.

"Which friends?" He probed cautiously.

"Nii-san" Alphonse hissed at his brother but Edward was not going to shut up.

"Let's just say Harry, your little battle is over but the war is still not won."

I know its short and I know that it took really long and I will not stop apologizing. IM SORRY!!!!! But from now on I will be updating regularly…well Ill try I hope your not upset and I REALLY hope you like it. *looks intensely at the review button*


	3. You'll See

*gets down on hands and knees* IM SOOO SORRY! For the wait that is. Here it is

Disclaimer: I do not own you, this or anything else as a matter of fact. Only the plot and the laptop im writing it on :3

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Chapter II

**Cherry Syndrome**

Harry stared at the blonde before him in silence.

"Your little battle is over but the war is still not won." He repeated deftly. What was he talking about? Ed smiled at him knowingly.

"It's the weather Harry." He explained, nodding towards the television screen. "The fog, it means something." He continued. Harry frowned in confusion.

"And what exactly do you mean?" He quipped. Edward sighed and turned his back to him, picking up a book from one of the many piles. The book was leather bound with a blank cover. Its appearance was old and frail. Edward tossed the book to Alphonse, who caught it with ease.

"Think about it Harry. The weather has been ghastly, it's been freezing cold, there's been a fog over the city for at least one month now. It doesn't help that everyone's been rather depressed recently. What does that usually mean where you come from?" Harry blinked his mouth hung open, speechless. Edward did not supply him with an answer but waited patiently as Harry racked his brains to come up with something.

"What do you mean where I'm from..." Harry began. He was not stupid. He had guessed what the Elric brothers meant but that was impossible. Wasn't it?

"A **Dementor** is a dark creature, considered one of the foulest that inhabit the world. Dementors feed off human happiness, and thus cause depression and despair to any who are in close proximity to them. They are also capable of consuming a person's soul, leaving their victims in a permanent vegetative state, and thus are often referred to as soul-sucking fiends" Alphonse read aloud.

It was possible. Because when Harry turned around the page of contents that he was faced with was an almost exact replica of the one he had seen in the library last year. The book that had been hidden away in the restricted section. There was a list as there was in any book, and at the top of the page was the title "Secrets of the Darkest Arts". Harry gasped.

"You're wizards" He breathed slowly. The Elric brothers grinned.

"Something like that."

"But what are you doing here? Why waste time in a muggle area like this....did Dumbledore send you? I keep telling him I don't need protection anymore."

"Shut up Harry he didn't send us." Edward chided, silencing him.

"We moved in here because we wanted to. The area was quite peaceful until the Dementors turned up." Alphonse explained. "Besides, we're not exactly wizards. We're alchemists."

"What do you mean?" Harry queried. He was trying desperately to put the pieces together however this puzzle was not making any sense. If the Elrics were wizards why were they here? Why had he never heard of them? How could he not have noticed? Edward groaned as he finally managed to shift himself from his position. He rolled onto the floor and picked up yet another book.

"It's exactly the way Al says. The ministry documents everything on every wizard from the day they're born, from family to medical history. But we have no records because we do not qualify as wizards. There are no names, no academic records and no job records. We are known only for one thing though, and that is that book you're holding. Oh and alchemy, you were given a taste of it in your years at school." Edward explained. Harry eyed the book in his hand curiously.

"Did you write this book?" He asked, however he almost stopped when he looked at Edward. A sad smile was now where the impatient look once was.

"No I didn't write it. It was written by a very dear friend of mine, Alphonse Heidrich. He wanted me to publish it in my name after he died. Technically they are all my stories, though; he was the one to write them down for me."

Harry frowned. The book "Tales of an Alchemist" had been published roughly fifty years ago. If Edward really knew the author then that would make him at least sixty years old.

"How old are you Edward?"

The question slipped before he could stop himself. Edward Elric had avoided the question last time it was asked. There was something, Harry was not sure what, but there was something and Edward's age may give it away.

"That is a bit hard to answer Harry. I will tell you, but some other time." Harry sighed. He had refused just as expected. Then it was on to the next question.

"You said you were alchemists but there's only one and that was Nicholas Flamel. The ministry has heard of him why not you?" To Harry's surprise both of the Elric brothers scoffed in disgust.

"What?" He probed.

"Nicholas Flamel showed himself to the Ministry, Harry they didn't find him. We were the ones to find him." Alphonse replied.

"That bastard did not deserve to call himself an Alchemist." Edward spat in disgust. "There are laws in alchemy and he bent his way around all of them."

"Wha...?" Before Harry could finish, Alphonse picked up where his brother and left off.

"The Philosophers stone you found in your first year at Hogwarts had the ability to makes someone live forever and also the ability to turn stones into gold. You see Harry; we have a rule, The rule of Equivalent Exchange. It states that to acquire something you must give something of equal value. The other rule is to never manipulate life, and do not turn anything into gold. To create the stone, Nicholas Flamel had to give something that was worth a life. What do you think is worth a life Harry?"

The conversation seemed to grow more intense as it moved on. Edward was showing expressions and emotions that had not been shown when he came over for dinner. He had seemed so calm and collected the first time he had met him. But now, he was seething at the mere memory of a man who had died five years ago.

"I don't know," Harry managed through strangled breath. The atmosphere was becoming unsettling. A grim smile made its way across the brothers faces.

"The only thing worth a life is another life." Edward recited monotonously. "Did you know that Flamel had a wife at the time?" He said grimly.

"It was like the Tucker case all over again." Alphonse mumbled, more to himself than Harry. Their smiles dropped as the sadness slowly conquered over the nonchalance. He had seen that look before many times. His friends from last year and even himself carried the look often. But Edward and Al's were far more grave, not only were they keeping secrets of the present but a haunted past was there as well. Harry started as Edward jumped to his feet and exclaimed loudly.

"That aside, Harry do you know why we lured you here? Don't look like that I was manipulating you the whole time. I knew what I was doing." Edward was holding a book in his hand; he walked over to Harry and placed it carefully into his receiving palms. Harry stared at it sceptically; it was yet another travelogue. They were littered all over the room.

"No I don't. Why did you and what is this?" Harry nodded towards the book as he flipped through the pages of the book, eyeing the locations as they past. Risembol, Central, Riole, North Riggs. He had never heard of these places.

"It's a travelogue but also a code, my code. I record all my alchemic findings in this format." Edward shrugged.

"We have a proposal for you Harry." Alphonse took a step forward, catching the wizard's attention. "How would you like to learn Alchemy Harry? Not everyone can do it but someone gave us a tip that you probably could." He smiled encouragingly. Harry fell speechless at Alphonse's words. He sighed and rethought what was happening. Two strangers had just come to him and asked to teach him Alchemy. They had told him that Flamel was a fraud, that neither of them truly existed and that someone was indeed watching over him....

"Do you mind if I sit down?"

"Haha no go ahead." Edward laughed, running a hand through his blonde hair. Harry staggered over to the cetee and dropped onto it. Judging from past experience Harry knew that the right thing to do was to be suspicious of the Elric brothers. But he couldn't help but think over the proposal when he looked at them. The golden eyes held wisdom that could be so useful to him.

"What good would it do for me?" He shot distrustfully, trying to listen to his brain instead of his feelings. The brothers grinned. Edward moved first.

"Look at it this way..."

"AH!" ...thud. Harry landed on the floor. He legs sprawled apart and his pockets suddenly empty. He looked up at Edward in disapproval, but all he got in return was a smirk.

"I have your wand, what do you do now?" Edward challenged, balancing Harry's wand on the tip of his finger.

"Ok I see your point, but I know absolutely nothing about alchemy." He asked. Edward shrugged as he lightly tossed the wand back to Harry.

"Of course you don't know anything, that's why we'll teach you."

"But why?" That was the final question, the one that was directed at the whole conversation. Why did they want to teach him? Why had they told him all these things? And why the hell was he agreeing? The Elric brothers exchanged a glance before they turned back and smiled warmly at him.

"We're bored. Besides, it's about time we got involved in this war of yours."

It was that moment that Harry realised; Edward would be sticking around for quite a while. And with just a nod and a smile he accepted whatever chaos they were bringing into his life.

"So," Alphonse smiled. "Would you like some tea?"

* * *

Two hours and a drink later Harry was once again walking back down Privet Drive. When he thought about the afternoon he realised that it had not been very productive. He had left the Elric house with more questions than answers. But Harry knew that really that would not matter. He stretched out and grinned to himself. The rest of the summer was definitely not going to turn out the way he'd thought.

But whether it turned out the way he hoped? He'd have to wait and see.

* * *

Edward and Alphonse stood in the threshold as they watched Harry enter his house. Alphonse turned to his brother and was the first to speak.

"Why didn't you tell him the truth nii-san?" He asked tentatively.

"Hmm?"

"Nii-san,"

"I just don't think he needs to know who requested us yet."

"Why not?"

"Well, he has enough shit coming as it is." Edward stepped back into the house. He picked up a newspaper that was thrown carelessly on the counter by the front door. He tossed it to his brother. "And this may just drive him around the bend." With those final words he departed. Alphonse was left with a copy of the Daily Prophet turned upside down in his hands. He stared down at it and carefully turned the paper to the front page. There was a man on the cover and in bold print on top of the moving photo stood the words.

"**Sirius Black, Disappeared?"**

Alphonse sighed.

"How are we supposed to get our check if our client goes missing?" He mumbled, shutting the front door.

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I could give you thousands of explanations as to why this is late. But Ill only give you two.

My parents discovered Im a member on FF and decided they didn't like it.

Im writing a fic on harry potter book 6 and I cant actually remember a thing that happens in it so im reading the book....veeery slowly

So im sorry . and lets pray that the next chappie doesn't take as long. At least the film is coming out. Im not sure when though

Please review :D


	4. A Sigh

I AM ALIVE!! A week after the promised date isn't too bad I guess *gets hit by rocks*

Ok Im a fail sorry…proceed

Disclaimer: Im pressed for time go away T.T

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Chapter IV

**Cherry Syndrome**

A sigh.

"This house is always so…well grim."

"Perhaps that's the reason behind the name Lupin."

"Oh well whose getting snippy now Severus?"

"When did I ever give you the right to use my first name?"

"Everyone else does."

"I think I just caught a glimpse as to why you were a marauder at school. Brains were not their strength."

"Bitter are we?"

"Hardly."

"Come on, even just a bit is fine."

There was a pause as the two men gathered their thoughts. The teasing smile slipped from Remus Lupin's face when he saw his former colleague turn to him. Snape's face was stony and completely serious. Before the question was asked Remus knew what it was.

"Why did you call me here Lupin?"

Well the circumstances dictated that he knew that was coming. No one else calls a private meeting at a time such as theirs.

"I have my theories that you know something." He questioned calmly. His face betrayed no emotions. "You know something about Sirius's disappearance." Yet another silence followed this accusation. Then a smile followed, and then an answer.

"And why would I do that?"

"You are so close to Dumbledore. If he knew anything, I assumed he would tell you." There was a tinge of desperation now. Remus crossed the room and stepped in front of Snape, looking directly into his eye.

"You assumed wrong. As far as I am aware Blacks disappearance has nothing to do with Voldemort. In other words it is not worth us bothering." He replied flatly. Remus glared bitterly at his words. He reached for Snape's collar and viciously tugged their faces together.

"Don't say that. He had just cleared his name. Sirius had no reason to go into hiding….Something must have happened to him."

"You may think that Lupin but no one has so much as breathed a word of Sirius Black. Nobody cares. But here's a word of advice. The last place he was seen was the Veil. If you do not know what that is then I can't help you" With a persistent glare he dug his long fingernails deeply into the flesh on the back of Lupin's hands. The other man drew his hand back not losing his reproachful look. Black was the only friend Lupin had left. He was probably not willing to lose more. Snape knew that friendship and loneliness were enough to drive anyone mad. And now Remus Lupin was once again experiencing it firsthand.

* * *

It was August twenty seventh, three days before The Hogwarts Express left Platform 9 ¾. It was the middle of the day. And it was raining.

Yes, three sentences were all Harry needed to summarize the day. Right now it was turning out to be rather miserable weather but he wanted to go shopping either way. Earlier that day his letter of supplies needed had arrived from Hogwarts. The moment he had picked it out of the letter box, had it ripped from his hands and then replaced he had immediately leaped out of the house and down the road. He ran up to the Elric's house and banged joyfully at the door. They had promised to take him shopping as a reward for his work over the past week.

However truth be told Harry did not feel like he had learnt much. He had been keen to learn the first couple of days but it had slowly dawned on him that not much would be happening. Harry had to first master the beginners steps. Those were having the Laws of Alchemy drummed into his head. After seven days of lessons he now knew them inside out. He banged on the door again.

"Edward, Al I got my letter!" He yelled through the thick wood of the oak door. Slow steps could be heard plodding their way towards the front door. Voice accompanied the steps as they grumbled.

"Shut up. Geez don't get so excited about a bloody shopping list." That was undoubtedly Edward. Harry thought. The term opposites attract was probably based on the Elric brothers. In the short time Harry had known them (Just under two weeks) he had already managed to figure out all their personality traits.

First there was Alphonse, he was quiet, motherly, friendly and owned just a hint of mystery. Edward possessed the mysterious trait just as much as his brother however it was accompanied with a loud mouth, stubborn attitude and impatience….So yes, that voice was definitely Edward's. The front door swung open. Bingo.

"It's seven in the morning Harry, what if we'd been asleep." Edward moaned. He obviously had not though. There was no visible trace of sleep on him. Other than perhaps the unruly hair, but that had proven to be Edward's way to vent frustration.

"You don't sleep." Harry replied, inviting himself into the house. Alphonse was in the kitchen and he smiled at him in greeting. Edward sighed.

"Every human needs to sleep Harry." He reasoned logically. Harry did not look at him.

'Exactly' he thought sullenly. When it came to his list of descriptions for the Elrics, "Human" was something he had scratched…. almost scratched. It was a bit unfair of him to completely brand the brothers as odd without proof.

"Harry do you want coffee?" So he'd wait for some.

"Yes, please!"

* * *

That was all the significant information needed to conclude how Harry Potter had ended up on a train to the centre of London on August 27th. He was headed to Diagon Alley with Edward and Alphonse Elric. The trip was not too long but in Alphonse's opinion it was long enough to quiz him.

Harry frowned.

"So if I practice a lot I will be able to do it without a transmutation circle?"

"No."

"But there is a technique that will let me do it?

"Nope,"

"So its impossible for me to learn to do it without one?

"Um…well."

"Nii-san you can't tell him that."

"Watch me Al." Edward turned to him. "There is one way to do it but it means breaking every Alchemic rule in existence. That is why it is so rare to come across someone who doesn't use a transmutation circle,"

Harry noticed the opportunity and of course being as trained as he was took it.

"But you don't use a circle Edward, neither does Alphonse." Unfortunately for Harry, the Elrics were just as alert as he was. They immediately caught on.

"AAAAnd that's a no go subject Harry but thanks for showing interest."

Harry groaned.

"At least tell me something. This is annoying."

By now they had reached the battered entrance of the Leaky Cauldron. Harry looked around the room and smiled as a wave of nostalgia swept through him. The Leaky Cauldron had been his introduction to the wizarding world. The snake in the zoo and Hagrid had been a start but this was the first real place.

"It hasn't changed at all." Alphonse murmured.

"You've been here before?" Harry asked. Alphonse smiled with the same familiar feeling as Harry had had just a moment ago.

"Many times." Edward grinned at Harry.

"Now you know something about us." Harry frowned recalling their former conversation. He had been distracted to easily.

"How much contact have you actually had with the Magic World?" He queried. The Elrics knew so much and yet still claimed not to be part of it.

Harry was not able to ponder this thought any further. A gasp grasped his attention. It was one of the haggard witches who were curled up at the bar. Her pale fingers were gripped around a glass of firewhiskey and were shaking from either amazement or horror. Her wide eyes were darting from the brothers to Harry's face and back again. He sighed at the familiar reaction. The "Famous Harry Potter" flu had been spreading like wild fire since last spring. Dumbledore had of course made sure all the credit went to Harry so that the ninja could get away without too much commotion. To the people he was now even more of a hero than ever.

The witch was now turning in her chair and readying herself to speak. Harry braced himself and sure enough the admiring gasp followed soon after.

"Edward Elric is that you?" Wait…what? That was not the name he had been expecting. "My name is Mahala Gibbins. I've heard so much about you." The lady gave a weak smile that glowed with admiration.

"Gibbins….did your grandfather work at the library by any chance?" Edward asked not faltering at all. Harry blinked. The witch in front of them looked fifty years old at youngest and Edward claimed to know her grandfather.

After they had exchanged a few friendly words Edward bid the witch goodbye and continued his way to the back of the Inn.

"How old are you really Edward?" Harry tried again. Edward sighed.

"I'm a lot older than I look." A bitter smile crossed his face as he glanced at his brother. "I guess I take after my father in that sense. Now come on there's someone waiting for you." Alphonse was the one to leisurely tap the bricks on the crumbling wall. The gate slowly began to appear and there was someone standing beyond the gate.

"Harry!" A huge grin spread across his face as he recognized the person beyond the wall. Her face was in an ever dreamy state. Her blonde hair was tumbling down her back in all sorts of bizarre angles and the bottle corks were aligned as always perfectly in place. Ah it had been a while.

"Hello Luna, have a nice summer?" She smiled in return and pulled out a postcard and handed it to him. Harry glanced down at the bold letters printed on it. She seemed to enjoy printing her cryptic messages onto letters. It was a lovely picture of the busy streets of Rome and on the other side…two words. Keep trying.

Harry's smiled grew even wider if it was even possible. All the assurance he needed was there.

"It was lovely thank you."

* * *

Now Edward Elric was not a genius. Nor was he completely aware of everything. Because if he was he would have noticed that the Leaky Cauldron was just a tad bit warmer than usual. He would have also noticed that the witch he was talking to was in fact closer to him than he thought. Because the moment he left the back exit of the Inn someone else had walked in from the front. Someone who had sat down and offered to buy her yet another drink. He would have noticed that this person who was making small talk with Mahala Gibbin looked amazingly like an acquaintance.

Yes, if Edward Elric was completely aware of everything he would know that exactly 3minutes after he left the Leaky Cauldron a man who looked exactly identical to Colonel Roy Mustang walked through the front doors.

* * *

Its me!! I betcha thought that I was dead :/ Sorry for the rubbish filler chapter but I needed a lead up to everything that's due to happen. Bear with me please

And I know I don't deserve it but pleeeease pity me and review!


	5. Colonel?

Eer…Hello. Would you actually believe me it I told you I forgot that I was writing this story? Of course you would (nt?) Ive just started 10th grade and am up to my hairline in homework but I made time to write this. More out of guilt than anything I suppose. I saw that someone had this in a community of dropped projects and it made me sad to realize that I'd become the authors I hate. So I got off my arse and had a collective fanfic writing session at my friends RoxyyRAWR's house

Disclaimer: IT'S A FANFIC!! What the fuck do you think…sorry that sounded slightly hostile *sweatdrops*

* * *

Chapter V

**Cherry Syndrome**

Diagon Alley was surprisingly bare compared to usual. Granted, there had still been the bustling of happy, trainee witches and wizards. There had still been the relaxed laughter of older magicians that had no worry of the approaching date; the departure of the Hogwarts Express. They'd flittered in and out of the shops frantically ticking off objects from their school lists. Others had basked in what was left of the summer warmth and their holidays that were soon coming to a close. The ever present pigeons had been there; pecking crumbs from café tables and beneath them. Even the magic barrier to muggles could not save the wizarding world from pests such as those.

That had all still been there but something about Diagon Alley seemed different. Harry did not feel the safe. The magic environment was meant to be his habitat, his _home_ but today, being in Diagon Alley had been unsettling. That was why when Edward informed him that they would be spending the night at the Leaky Cauldron Harry had very reluctantly agreed.

Him, Luna, Edward and Al, they sat in a secluded corner of the restaurant as they ate silently. Well, silently until Edward broke the silence with a question very along the lines of Harry's thoughts.

"You noticed it today too didn't you?" He asked, eyeing Harry with his fork halfway to his mouth.

"It didn't feel right if that's what you mean." Edward smiled a little mischievously.

"It is what he meant" Alphonse provided, nodding encouragingly to Harry. "That's because there were people watching the street. I'm not sure if we ever clarified this for you Harry but not everything is safe yet." He continued. Harry stirred uncomfortably, replacing his fork onto the table. It was true that he had been wondering and Edward's cryptic hints had also got him pondering the matter.

"Voldermort's not dead Harry." Luna clarified for Alphonse.

"But how?"

"He's like a worm remember. He slithered out of your grip at the very last moment." Edward affirmed. Despite the grave news he just provided Edward was happily munching away at his meal.

"Ok that's not funny." Harry muttered bitterly. He'd always thought that the world could never truly be rid of him but hearing it worded like that made his insides churn. "Is that why you're here." He glanced up after posing this question. Edward and Al were always reluctant to answering questions. No doubt they were going to avoid this one too. But they didn't. When Harry looked up the two Elric brothers were muttering inaudibly to one another.

"Yes Harry…that is why we've shown up at this time." Alphonse said, smiling at him meekly.

"And before you get ahead of yourself its not to protect you. We're here to investigate and trip them at the finish line." Edward interjected when he opened his mouth to speak.

"Well thanks Edward but I wasn't expecting much protection from you." He smirked sarcastically. Edward's eyes flashed as he slowly braced himself ready to pounce on him depending on Harry's next words.

"What are you trying to say Potter?"

"Well someone as shor….." A hand came across his lips before he could get the word of his tongue. He glanced down at the pale hand then his eyes traveled up the arm to rest on the face of its owner. Lune had been his savior. She smiled calmly at him but there was an undercurrent in her expression. That undercurrent came as a hiss from Alphonse telling him to shut up before he did something very stupid. Harry cleared his throat as Luna lowered her hand.

"So…"

"Excuse me do you have any salt we don't seem to have any?" Interrupted yet again he cursed. A little vexed, Harry turned to the voice. It was the same lady as before. What was her name? Ah yes, Mahala Gibbin. Harry forcefully smiled at the dainty lady and reached over his table to hand her the salt.

That was when it happened. A clatter rushed over the table as both the Elric brothers simultaneously dropped their cutlery. The action probably went unnoticed to the rest of the bar but Harry's puzzled look made up for that.

Edward and Alphonse were gaping like fish out of water at Gibbin's acquaintance. Edward especially looked as if he was desperately trying to string words together but was failing miserably. Gibbin, smiling leaned to the side and presented the man beside her.

"This here is Mr. Roy Mustang. He is a family friend of mine." She chattered obviously happy to show off such a good looking friend. Roy looked up at his name and smiled warmly at them. The way he looked reminded Harry slightly of a certain friend he had made the year before…save for the smiled of course. Roy had a pale complexion and ebony hair that fell to his eyes in a neat fringe. When he flicked this hair away it revealed a pair of charcoal eyes that glittered with both curiosity and wisdom. He had the same look about him as the Elric brothers however it seemed far more subtle. It was a look that could yet age on him.

Roy and Harry exchanged the ever awkward greetings before the two tables fell into silence. Luna quietly sipped her Butterbeer and watched contentedly as the Elrics slowly worked their way out of the shock.

Edward was the first of them to speak.

"Initials?"

"I beg your pardon?"

"Your initials, Mustang what are they?" Edward choked out frowning at him. Roy smiled in return and leaned back into his chair.

"Roy M. Mustang." Harry watched as Alphonse visibly relaxed and Edward heaved a sigh of relief. "That is quite the way to start a relationship Mr…?"

"Elric." Gibbin provided. She smiled. "He worked with my grandfather." Roy smiled and raised a curious eyebrow at the pair.

"Did he now?" Roy murmured. This time instead of a shocked reaction Edward took on defensive. Within a second he was on his feet and in front of Mustang.

"You're an asshole." He stated so matter of factly that it really left no space for argument. Roy merely stared at the man in front of him with slight surprise but Harry sensed a hint of amusement.

"If you've decided that already then my effort on first impressions has really paid off." He chuckled, twirling the glass of red wine in his hand. Edward gritted his teeth.

"You're so much like him. Even when it's not you, you have to fuck everything up don't you? "He snapped more to himself than anyone. Alphonse rose to his feet and scampered to Edward's side. "Now I have to explain everything to Harry!" Edward muttered resentfully as he turned at the heel and, still ranting, walked up the stairs to their room. "And if it were you you'd say some bastard remark about it being my fault ARGH fucking Colonel." Edwards company watched the retreating man's back blankly trying to gather what just happened.

"Have I met him before?" Roy questioned. There was still a slight chuckled in his voice which Edward would have been sure to brain him for. Alphonse luckily had more self-control.

"Sorry Mr. Mustang you look _really_ similar to someone we know." He explained with a smiled. Harry knew by now that this particular smile was Al's fibbing one. Besides, something about that statement was fishy. "Edward didn't have the best of relationships with him." …Ok that statement was definitely true. An accepting smiled spread across Roy's lips.

"It's ok he seemed…entertaining." He quipped. Alphonse returned this with a strained smile before he excused himself. Harry, of course, was right behind him.

When the three of them were safely up the stairs, with a chuckle Roy leaned his chin onto his intertwined fingers. Luna replaced her cup onto the wooded table and looked at him curiously. Their eyes locked and with a poised expression Luna leaned towards him.

"Entertaining?" She asked a small smile spreading across her face. Roy M. Mustang grinned back.

"Did you hear? He called me Colonel."

* * *

"Hey Edward if that's a sketch of Mustang then you fail miserably." Harry snickered as he glanced over his mentor's shoulder at his papers.

"This stupid student-san is most definitely _not_ a sketch of Mustang. I was about to explain it to you but you just put me off." He grumbled shuffling more papers together. Alphonse sweat dropped as he plopped onto one of the beds and made himself comfortable.

"Aaaw come on." Harry urged, plopping onto the ground beside Edward. He tilted his head to one side, eyes tracing the lines of whoever the drawing was of. Now that he looked at it…perhaps who wasn't the right word. It had the body of a human yes, but the face was bare of all but the manic grin that reached from ear to ear. Beside the figure was a large door with eccentric patterns graved upon it. Whatever that was Harry had a gut wrenching feeling that he wanted it to remain shut at all costs. "It's creepy" He uttered inaudibly.

"Hmm." Edward chimed in agreement. "That's the Gatekeeper."

"I'm sorry, what?"

"That's the gate and that's the Gatekeeper." Edward explained pointing at each sketch in turn.

"Is it human?" He asked, looking apprehensively at the man with the grin.

"The gate? Of course it isn't."

"That's not what I was talking about and you know it Edward. This thing, this "Gatekeeper" is it human?" Harry said still inspecting the creature. Edward turned back towards the paper.

"That? God knows." He replied. "Now here's another lesson for you Harry. Human's think that there is only one world. That this around us is all there is. Well, that's not quite right. There's more than that. That is where the gate comes in. First off this thing is everywhere, you can't see it and most people don't even know that it exists, but it does." Harry nodded, frowning in concentration.

"What's on the other side of the gate?" Edward put the paper on the floor and looked his student in the eye.

"Your friends from last year, have you ever tried to contact them?" Harry nodded once again.

"But they never answered." He replied dejectedly. Hedwig always came back with the same letter I sent her off with. Edward smiled. Alphonse was the one to add in this time. He was lying on his back, staring at the ceiling and fiddling with what seemed to be his wand.

"That's because she can't find them. They're on the other side of the gate, in their world."

"Seriously?"

"Yup."

"So there's like a parallel universe running alongside ours?" To this question Alphonse rolled onto his stomach and began lazily drawing patters on the carpet.

"That's where most people make a mistake. It's called a gate but it's more like a room with many doors. There isn't only one parallel universe there are hundreds. "

Harry picked up the discarded paper from the ground and was once again drawn to the being besides the Gate.

"So this thing is from some other universe."

Edward smiled.

"That thing, The Anbu, your other mates….and us." Harry looked up skeptically at that.

"You?"

The brothers followed with a nod. Edward propped himself up with a promising smiled printed across his face.

"You wanted to know more about us…here goes nothing."

* * *

..uh Hi eheh

Review please? I won't say the pretty please thing it makes me nauseous.


	6. What would I tell you?

Et voila....Ive been watching Hetalia. My favourite character is France can you tell? :D

Disclaimer: this is not mine...which is a lie because in certain ways it is but its mean to confuse so I wont bother explaining bla bla bla....

* * *

Chapter VI

**Cherry Syndrome**

The gate was a door to whichever world you pleased. But therre was always a price to pay. Edward had told him that he passed through the gate as a punishment and that Al had later joined him. Harry rolled over, twisting the blankets and causing the bed to creak in protest. Once again he found himself making lists in his head. It had become a normal bed time activity since the Elrics had turned up. So now as several nights before he made a list off the top of his head.

**Point one**: Time does not pass the same in every world.

This was the easiest idea to grasp and it finally cleared a few things up. In comparison to another world the one he was in might move faster or slower than usual. In Edward and Alphonse's minds they were barely turned seventeen and eighteen. However, they were in reality well over eighty. It was like when you go to a different country but do not adjust the time zone. Harry could not help but cringe when he thought that when he saw his friends again. If what his new teachers were saying was true then how old were the ninja now?

**Point two**: There is a doppelganger for everybody.

Somewhere in whatever place the Elrics actually came from there was an exact copy of Harry Potter wandering around. A clone of him who lived a different life. It was hard to imagine...reeeally hard to imagine.

**Point three**: Doppelgangers do not ever meet.

When Harry asked why Edward had simply shrugged. If a person, for whatever reason, were to accidentally pass through the gate then the original version always died.

"There's no exception." Edward said stubbornly. "The moment I first passed into this world a boy named Edward Elric was crushed by an enemy airship." His expression softened slight at his next words. "When Alphonse came here, Alphones Heidrich was shot in the back and bled to death." At this Harry glanced at the boy still lolling on the bed. He sighed and looked sadly at Harry. He got the message not to say anything but he also took note. DO NOT LET OTHER HARRY IN HERE.

**Point four**: Edward and Alphonse Elric were Alchemists from another world.

When told this Harry had very cunningly nodded his head and said fair enough. They were strong, clever, manipulative and wise men there really was not much he could muster the nerve to say.

So where did Mustang tie into all this? Well he was a man on the other side of the gate. Put in Edward's terms he was a sadistic asshole who used them to get ahead in his career. A glance to Alphonse however showed him that despite the dubious relationship Edward and his boss had had there had always been an undercurrent of gratefullness and possibly respect. About a teaspoon's worth of it.

Harry chuckled too himself as he once again caused the bed to creak. From the other side of the room a groggy voice ran out and scattered his thoughts.

"Harry Potter if you make that bed creak one more time I just might come over there and strangle you." It mumled before retreating back into the shadows. Harry glanced across the room tentatively. Then heard another mumble.

"Sorry, Alphonse doesn't like being woken from his sleep." This time Harry was surprised. Had that been Alphonse? Harry had already deemed him the nicer of the two brothers so hearing something so out of character was just....

"Nii-san please stop pretending to be me. You'll confuse people" And things were back to normal again. Harry rolled his eyes and lay back down on the pillow. Hogwarts tomorrow he thought giddily. With a smile on his face Harry waited for sleep to claim him.

Sleep did come easily to Harry that night, only in small fits. He was finding it very hard to lull himself to sleep and it soon became a lot harder when he heard someone climb out of bed and tip toe out the door. Subtly, Harry cracked an eye open to spy. When the room's door opened, light from the hallway flooded into the room and revealed a blonde figure as he snuck into the hallway.

Edward?

Harry knew it was wrong to poke his nose into other peoples' affairs but old habits die hard. He strained his ears to make out the frustrated mumurs coming from beyond the door.

* * *

"I'm sorry, can I help you?" Edward asked curtly, folding his arms impatiently. The man who was seemingly innocently walking past the room stopped and smiled charmingly at the blonde.

"Why, Mr. Elric sorry was I disturbing you?"

"Your very existence disturbs me, Mustang."

"Thats not nice."

"Never said I was, now why are you pacing outside my room at God knows what time in the morning."

"It's twelve thirty I assumed big boys like yourself were still awake at this time."

"You assumed wrong."

"Obviously not."

"I hate you."

"Now why is that?" Roy asked with a hint of amusement. He mirrored Edward's movements by crossing his arms.

"Because your arrogant, selfish, greedy, conceited bastard who only likes to annoy people." Edward huffed, frowning even more.

"And you concluded this from what? Thirty seconds of conversation with me?"

.....

"You really don't recognize me do you?" Edward asked after eyeing the man curiously. This Roy had a less of a haunted look about him, but maybe that was just his memory playing tricks on him.

"Aha so we _have_ met before. When?" Roy asked. This time he was genuinly curious. It was Edwards turn to smirk as he sadistically decided to play with the mystery that had already been solved. This was not Colonel Mustang. Of that Edward was now 100%.

"That's my little secret. Its up to you to figure out Mustang. Oh and by the way call me Edward I hate ''" Just as Edward was about to return to bed, leaving the other man riddled with questions as he so loved to do, he remembered his initial purpose. "So what are you doing here?" He questioned, one hand poised on the doorknob. Roy grinned broadly at him.

"Ah you see I recieved a letter from Dumbledore earlier today." Roy took hold of Edward's hand, ignoring when it twitched with suspicion. In it he placed a gold Hogwarts teachers badge. "I assume a genius like you can sew. You need it on your robes." The friendly grin turned into a chuckle as Roy released his hand. "I have a little secret to share with you too Edward. Starting tomorrow we're collegues."

"Are you fucking me?"

"Sorry Blondie you're not my type, I like 'em a lot more curvy."

"Shut up Mustang. I know I got the job but why the hell am I working with you?"

"Are you really just going to accept it like that?"

"Accept what?"

"Me being a teacher?"

"Well the proofs right in front of me." Edward's eyes flared. "Is it a joke? 'Cuz if its a joke I swear I will..."

"Relax Edward its completely serious. You and I will be replacing Professor D. Umbrige as Hogwarts Supervisor, seing as she suffered a nasty demotion after last year." Edward opened his mouth to reply when he heard a gasp that was very hastily covered by a fit of coughs. Harry.

"Do I have a choice?" He sighed.

"Nope."

"Fine, but know that I won't spend more time with you than absolutely necessary."

"And know that I _will_ discover how you know me." Roy smiled and held out his hand. "To a good year." Edward rolled his eyes and held out his hand. Shaking Roy's fimly he added.

"Or a lovely year of torture. Good Night Mustang." Edward opened the door wider and turned to look Roy in the eye one final time. "One more thing, next time you want to give me bad news think of what time it is. Like lunchtime...Lunchtime's good tell me then." With that he returned to the bedroom and his warm sheets, leaving a chuckling man behind him in the corridor.

"I'll keep that in mind Edward."

* * *

So there's always been this saying. Remember it? There's two sides to every tale. Well this one is no different. In suit of every cliché it is now our duty to go to other people's point of views. Who to start with? Hm... ah I know.

"What the fuck?" He poked at the sleeping, male body lying on his sofa. Sirius Black groaned and rolled over, trying to escape the offending finger.

"Nice way to greet someone idiot."

"I know but..he has a stick."

"Come on moron you know exactly what that thing is called. Even you have read a fairytale at some point in your dysfunctional childhood."

"I happen to have first hand experience with these "sticks" as you call them, Cheapskate."

"I didn't call them that. You did."

"Shut up! So anyway, lets see what the others have to say about this." He smirked and resumed his torturous poking.

After all...if the gate is actually a room only God knows where Sirius Black ended up. Well God and me and I can tell you...he did not get too lucky.

* * *

There was a squeal, two gasps and bonecrushing hugs. Platform 9¾ was as packed as usual and just as cheery. All around him there were the usual sunny goodbyes taking place and also the reunions with friends. His ones being Ron and Hermione.

Ron and Harry would never get used to the odd way Hermione managed to crush their ribs in affection. Behind him, Harry could sense a smirk spreading across his tutor's face. Silently Harry swore to one day pay Edward back with equal amounts of suffering. Edward and Alphonse were looming behind the students, subtly climbing onto the train. He guessed that the only reason they were being subtle is because not three metres from them Roy stood socialising with a group of very young, very pretty witches.

"How was your summer Harry?" He turned back to Ron and smiled.

"Oh you know the same as usual plus a little more." Well he was not sworn to secrecy. Hermione positively beemed with excitement.

"Really? Do tell."

"Well." Harry nodded towards the brothers. Both of them noticed the sudden pressure of three pairs of eyes on them and reacted differently. Edward ignoring Harry thouroghly and Alphonse smiling cheerily and waving towards him. "I've made two new "friends" so to speak."

"Teachers?" Hermione and Ron gaped, each for entirely different reasons. Harry nodded sheepishly.

"They moved in up the road from me. Turns out they're quite famous." He explained.

"Edward and Alphonse Elric. I could tell you a thing or two about them." Hermione filled in. Harry grinned. Obviously his questioning about Edward had caused her to do a little research.

"So could I, Hermione." They shared a knowing grin and Ron merely stared at the space between them.

"You guys...every year our friends just get freakier." He mumbled. Harry laughed.

"You're so right Ron." He looked his friend straight in the eye and held up his trunk. "Ready for another retarded year?" Ron smiled and with an enthusiastic nod they boarded the Hogwarts Express. Taking them to year six of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

* * *

Haha I finished this thinking aww thats such a pretty ending I should just keep it like that. But I think you might kill me :/

I dare say I actually managed to keep my goal this time. It involved drinking beacoup de caffine and wearing oversized shirts but I got through it anyway. Ok I was off by a week but it means Im practicing and that makes perfect. Be proud of me :D

Reviews are like...ah fuck that Im too tired =_=


	7. Once Upon a Time

So my dear little munchkins what have we learnt? Chika is crap at keeping promises thats what. But on a plus note I have FINALLY seen the sixth film (I got it for xmas) and have a much better idea as to where I am now going to take this story. So I hope you'll forgive me ):

Disclaimer: this is a FANfiction

* * *

Chapter VII

**Cherry Syndrome**

The ride to Hogwarts started as a highly uneventful one. At that precise moment Alphonse was helping Luna Lovegood hand out The Quibbler. When offered one, he had simply been too kind to refuse and after reading one article Al had become hooked. He very quickly made it his quest to assist Luna. This, leaving Edward alone in a compartment. He had purposfully sought a seat away from his student so that Harry would have time to talk to his friends. He was sure there was lots of subjects they needed to catch up on and Edward was tired.

Despite having regained his brother's body, Edward still slept and ate enough for the two of them. Old habits died hard he would always explain fondly. So when the professor had walked into the carriage and felt the soft cushion of the seats he had almost instantly fallen into a deep, dreamless slumber for the better part of the ride. He did not even notice when the compartment door slid open and someone tip-toed inside.

Roy Mustang sat thoughtfully with his fingers laced together. His eyes studied the blonde in front of him meticulously. This boy, his collegue who claimed to know him rang no bells. Edward Elric was not a name that he knew personally and he should really have had no interest in him. But something felt like it should ring a bell. Maybe he'd read an article or something. He was after all one of the most well known wizards of their age.

"How do I know you then?" He murmured.

"You know its rude to watch people whilst they're sleeping and in your case extremely unerving as well." After initially jumping out of his skin, a playful smile spread across Roy's face.

"Most people tend not to be so self-aware when they sleep talk Professor Elric." He chastised playfully as he leaned back in his seat.

"Yes but they also don't tend to mumble away incoherently when they're awake." Edward countered with his eyes still shut. He made no move to sit up and merely listened to the train as it rattled along the tracks.

"Asking how I know you makes perfect sense in my head." Roy reasoned causing Edward to crack an eye open.

"Haven't I already said I won't tell you?"

"I know, I was talking to myself."

"Uah, even scarier." With a final chuckle they fell into silence again. Edward let his eyes fall shut again and shifted in order to become more comfortable. Once he was awake he knew he would not be sleeping again anytime soon. But it could not hurt to try.

"So tell me a little about yourself Edward." No such luck. After a pause, Edward sat up and stretched lazily.

"What do you want to know?" He asked warily. It would be unfair and down right suspicious if he refused to answer a few questions he concluded.

Roy tapped his chin.

"Hobbies?" He asked.

"I like reading." Edward replied.

"Aha. Food?" Roy continued, not wanting them to fall into silence again.

"Pardon?"

"Favourite food."

"Oh." Edward looked down at his hands. They were folded together in his lap. "Apple Pie." He replied fondly.

"Subject?"

"Potions. What's with this? Are analysing me?" Edward asked a little louder than necessary.

"Just answer the questions, Edward."

"Don't order me around." He snapped indignantly. Roy huffed.

"Fine. Please answer the questions Edward, Darling." Roy snorted. "Ha! You shivered. Am I that alluring" He snickered. Edward squirmed in his seat.

"Too fucking creepy. Please don't ever do that again."

"If you promise to answer my questions." Roy smiled charmingly. Now it was Ed's turn to huff.

"Fine."

"Brilliant. So...favourite book?"

* * *

"It's a creepy shop. He's a creepy bloke." Ron concluded, slapping his hand across his knee proudly.

"Ron, that's hardly reason enough for Malfoy to be stalking the streets of Knockturn Alley with a look that says he's going to meet whoever it was that shoved that stick up his arse." Harry answered incredulously. Ron chuckled at his friend.

"Thats a very long way of describing it mate." Hermione eyed them both.

"Not only was it long but is was also vulgar." She added then turned to Harry with a sigh. "Harry, you don't honestly think that he's still messing with the Dark Arts do you?" Ron frowned.

"But You Know Who is dead and he wouldn't dare do anything after what happened to Daddy." He said unsurely. Being friends with who he was there was always more. So Ron was not surprised when the boy opposite him sighed.

"About that. You know how I've been talking to Edward." He paused for effect. Hermione and Ron nodded. "Well he says Voldemort might...not be." Harry said cautiously.

Obviously not carefully enough. Both, Ron and Hermione jumped to their feet instantly with a loud:

"WHAT?!"

"Harry, how?

Harry tried to back into his seat but it didn't work. He sighed a little then rushed to explain himself.

"He didn't really explain it. I don't know how either. He just said that there's still a lot more work to do." Hermione sighed.

"Could he have been more cryptic?" She complained and plopped into her seat again. Ron did the same but inched slightly closer to Hermione than necessary. Harry grinned. "Harry its not funny. What if what Professor Elric says is true? Then again how do we know what to believe if that's all he's told you." Hermione answered herself as she gripped her chin. She started mumbling about it. Harry and Ron glanced at each other before deeming it best not to interept their friend's musings.

That was when the apartment door slide open once more.

"Would you like me to explain if for you then?" Harry jumped.

"Alphonse." The blonde smiled at him. He was dressed in the students uniform. But when Harry let his eye wander to the boy's chest he was met with a pile of "Quibblers" where the House badge should be. He returned his eyes to Alphonse's face with the intent to ask when another head popped out from behind him.

"Hello everyone." It was Luna. She was carrying an equal set of magazines and her expression was just as warm. She looked at them knowingly before she heartily offered them each a Quibbler. Harry took it gladly.

"Hi loon..Luna." Ron greeted before being elbowed by Hermione and frowned at by Harry. The two newcomers bustled into the room and took a seat on either side of Harry. It was then that he jumped to attention.

"Hermione, Ron, this is Alphonse Elric. Ed's brother and a sixth year" After short hello's Hermione was the first to plow out questions.

"What do you mean You Know Who isn't dead? We saw him die. And where do you come from? Are the same as the transfers last year? I swear I will hex your balls green Alphonse Elric if you pull anything that they did." They sweatdropped.

"Tch, and you called us vulgar." Ron mumbled. Alphonse chuckled.

"Miss Granger, I can assure you that my brother and I are not the same as last years tranfers. As you know he is working as a professor and I'm really just here to kill time." He explained. Hermione seemed rather taken aback at his leisurly approach to studying. "Anyway the reason why we believe Voldemort to still be alive is because of the prophecy. You remember it don't you Harry? What did it say?"

"Neither can live while the other survives." Harry provided. Alphonse smiled and nodded at him.

"Exactly. One of you had to kill the other. So, who was the one to deliver the killing blow during your fight last year?" There was a moment of silence as the Golden Trio reflected on that night a few months ago. The one to kill Voldemort had not been any of them and most certainly not the Boy Who Lived.

"Oh shit."

"Ronald!"

"Well sorry Miss Pedantic but we've just found out that You Know Who is still alive."

"He _might_ be." Hermione corrected.

"I think I should be allowed to swear." Ron grumbled and folded his arms. Harry gritted his teeth.

"What a lovely way to start the new school year." He grumbled. Beside him Luna giggled.

"As I said," She turned to Harry and smiled. "As long as you're alive there's always more."

* * *

"Poet?"

"Allan Poe. Town?"

When given time Edward and Roy had quickly fallen into a rhythm. They were now throwing questions back and forth and saving information for another time. So even as the joints of the train began to slow and they drew closer to the Hogwarts platform they continued to play.

"Munich." Roy answered, causing Edward to grin. Now there was a surprise. "Love?" Edward almost fell as he felt his grip on the chair slip.

"Now that's personal." Edward stammered as he regained his initial pose. Roy rolled his eyes.

"Just answer the question."

...

"Once upon a time." Edward replied quietly causing his collegue to nod with understanding.

"Still?" He asked. Edward shook his head in reply.

"No." He mumbled his voice gradually shrinking to fit its owner.

"Was she blonde?"

"Yeah. How'd you guess." Edward blinked. Roy gave another nod. This time however it was one of approval.

"Ah yes blondes are the best after all." He grinned at Edward. There was another pause before Edward slowly began to chuckle lightly.

"You're such a prat Mustang." He laughed, turning away. Roy did the same and at the very moment that the train finally drew to a halt he smiled.

"Why thank you Ed."

* * *

Yes there is past EdWinry because I like it and because I want this to be as like the manga as possible.

Ok reason why there isnt much going on in this chapter is because I needed a chapter for the train ride and of course time for me to get AURoy and Ed's relationship rolling. If everything goes as planned I will have chappie 8 out on 1.1.10 because that will be one year since I finished Anbu Pair :P

Reviews are very much appreciated

Oh and by the way I am currently in the process of rewriting chapter 2. Why? Because I dont like it


	8. Conflicts on a Train

Chapter XIII

**Cherry Syndrome**

"So I'm not going crazy?"

"No brother, I can see the dead horse too."

"Then why isn't it licking you?"

"Because you just have a way with imaginary animals Edward. I happen to think that you're both barmy by the way."

"Shut up asshole."

"Hah! Barmy haven't heard that word in a while. What are you like eighty Professor Mustang?"

"Ronald!"

"Hey has anyone seen Harry?"

"I'll take that as a compliment to my colourful vocabulary Weasley."

"I'm terribly sorry Professor, he...has something very wrong with him."

"Thank you very much Hermione. Its nice to see you have my back."

"As I was saying Harry...."

"That's quite alright Granger. If I have you standing up for more how could I possibly get upset?"

"Oi, pervert you aren't being paid to hit on the students."

"Brother's right. I'm pretty sure you can get locked up for that."

"Exactly! Thank you Al."

"So I guess I'll go back and check the train then..."

"So does that mean I can hit on the teachers? Are there any hot female teachers at Hogwarts, Weasly?"

"No...no there really aren't. The closest thing we've got to that is Professor Elric"

"I beg your pardon?"

"Well I suppose he could pass for a girl."

"What?"

"Ok Hermione, that is a very bad thing to say to brother."

"WHAT THE HELL! Am I invisible too now."

"Well its not untrue. Edward you are short enough."

"WHO ARE YOU CALLING SO SHORT THAT YOU WOULDN'T BE ABLE TO SEE HIM EVEN IF HE WORE A FLASHING SHIRT THAT SAID "I AM HERE!"???"

Silence fell after that exclamation as all eyes turned on Edward. He was winded and blushing heavily due to his sudden outburst. To make matters worse Roy could do nothing but snicker. Alphonse had let slip that his brother was terribly sensitive about his height and Roy had taken to this fact like a bear to honey.

Edward huffed and turned back to the matter at hand. In front of him was something that looked like the love child of a chimera and Black Beauty. He inspected it thoughtfully and the chimera seemed to hold his gaze. Alphonse was just as ready to join the investigation. He leaned in to watch as the jaunty bones rippled with each movement. The motion became more frequent as the stares intensified. Hermione eventually took pity on the animal and decided to explain it to the new professor.

"Mr. Elric this is called a Thestral. They're magical creatures which are associated with death. This is because only those who have witnessed death can see them." Edward and Alphonse both thoughtfully "aha-ed" whilst Roy merely yawned.

"Can we hurry up and get these wards up then?" He mumbled. "I don't want to miss the feast." As if on que Mr. Flitwick tottered over to the group looking slightly perplexed.

"Wow I suddenly feel so good about myself."

"Brother." Alphonse hissed, nudging him. Flitwick ignored the two brothers and instead turned to the students.

"What are you three still doing here? You'll get locked out if you don't hurry up to the castle. These wards are not something to mess with I'd expect you know that." He said, waving his wand towards the three students. Ron, Hermione and Alphonse nodded qucikly before hurrying onto the last remaining thestral. With a small wave to the professors they were gone.

When the road was clear, Flitwick turned to the new supervisors with a worried look on his face.

"We're still missing three students," he rattled. "It doesn't usually take this long for them to get here."

"And who might the students be?" Roy asked. Flitwick looked down at his notes.

"Draco Malfoy, Luna Lovegood and Harry Potter." Edward and Roy groaned.

"I knew that boy was trouble." Edward complained, pulling back his sleeves. "Oh well, we'll go and check the train." He volunteered, grabbing hold of Roy's robes. The older man raised an eyebrow skeptically.

"We?" Edward smirked.

"Yes, we, come on Mustang." With one final yank they too left the charms professor stood alone at the gate.

* * *

"Didn't your mother ever tell you that it was rude to eavesdrop Potter?" Draco sneered. He slowly turned his back to the door as he pulled out his wand. Within a split second Harry felt the bridge of his nose give way beneath a vicious curse uttered by the blonde. Harry scowled at him. There was no point in hiding now. In a heartbeat he threw his invisibility cloak to the floor and drew his wand.

"Well I heard your voice Malfoy and I couldn't help myself." He returned with equal malice.

"You should have thought more thoroughly on that then. RICTUSEMPRA!" He yelled, directing the spell at him. Harry was just as quick and at precisly the same moment another spell was cast in Malfoy's direction. At that moment four spells went off in the compartment. Yes...four.

"EXPELLIARMUS!"

The compartments blinds flew open as two figures burst in through the door towards the front. Harry turned wide eyed to face the person who had disarmed him.

"Edward? Luna? What are you doing he..."

"We're stopping you from killing each other, thats what." The deep voice came from the other side of the train. It was Roy Mustang and in his arms he held an extremely relentless and struggling Draco Malfoy. Edward clicked his tongue as he picked up the two discarded wands.

"Mr. Malfoy I know that Potter is a lost cause..."

"Oi!"

"But I'd expect more from you. Please find a less annoying place to duel next time." Edward slurred handing him the wand. Draco's glare deepened as he wrenched himself from Roy's grip.

"Nice face, Potter." With those final words, he was gone. Harry sighed as he too took his wand from Edward. The blonde snickered.

"It is indeed a nice face. You're lucky he got to you or else I would have broken your nose." He chuckled. Harry backed away slightly.

"Hey Edward, you were talking about me getting arrested but I'm pretty sure violence against students can do you in too." Roy informed him. "Now lets get off the train I don't want to miss the feast." Then, with a skip in his step, Roy was gone and Harry returned his gaze to Edward.

"Don't look at me. I'm not fixing it for you." He muttured. He walked out of the compartment with Harry and Luna at his tail. Luna smiled at him sympathetically.

"Here." She reached into her pocket and pulled out a fresh, baby blue hankerchief. "I may never have had a broken nose but the blood makes it look painful." She explained and Harry could not help but stare.

"Thank you." He murmured, accepting the hankerchief. It was then that Edward finally turned to face him.

"Go one then." He said.

"What?"

"Your theory on Draco Malfoy. I know there is one. That boy is mighty suspicious." Edward explained, shoving his hands in his pockets. Harry frowned. So he had not been the only one to notice. Draco Malfoy had definitly changed over the summer. He had heard him. The way he had spoken to his friends and the things he spoke of. Being destined for more, escaping from Hogwarts, seeing him creeping around Knockturn Alley like that, it was all signs of change. And the only thing Harry could think of:

"I think he's one of them." He said quietly but the second time he gained more confidence. "I think that Malfoy has become a Death Eater."

Luna smiled.

"Do you now?"

* * *

I realise that this is not very long but I kept my promise so I'm happy :D

Please review. It would mean an awful lot to me.

Just one thing to say this time. Please explaaaiin your reviews. The reason I ask for them is so that I can get better at writing but if what you are writing is the characters are ooc then what good does that do me. Please tell me how the characters are ooc. Do you's understand? Thank you very much


	9. Speeches of the Great Hall

'Tis I. Sorry about the MASSIVE wait for this chapter. I would like to say that it will be better but Im not sure if that is the case until summer starts (June15th). Also me and my friend are working on another fanfiction too which right now I think sounds pretty damn good if I might say so myself. Its a -Man crossover. Oh and By the WAY. I have been dallying with Anbu Pair a bit. There have been touch ups every here and there.

* * *

Chapter IX

**Cherry Syndrome**

Harry plonked himself onto his seat at the Gryffindor Table, still cautiously fiddling with his nose. In all fairness, it had been a while since he suffered a broken nose. The last time being before Dudley knew that Harry was a wizard. Surprisingly, since that discovery the amount of abuse had dropped. Anyway, even back then Harry had just had to wait out the repair, so having it fixed by magic seemed a little too surreal for his taste. Even if he had suffered a boneless arm....but they did not speak of that.

"Harry, where have you been?" Hermione whispered, leaning forwards. The Sorting was just coming to an end and it would be rude to disturb. Harry sighed and beckoned Ron and Hermione closer. Al, despite the lack of invitation, joined in.

"I had a run in with Malfoy on the train." He muttered, once again reaching for his nose.

"What?" Ron and Hermione hissed in outrage. Alphonse took on a more concerned approch.

"Are you alright? Did anyone get hurt?" He asked, eyes wide with consternation.

"Well yeah, he broke my nose but Luna fixed it for me." Harry rushed so his friends would not overreact. "And I think Professor Mustang took quite the elbowing from Malfoy, when he tried to stop us. Otherwise, I think we're fine." He appeased. Hermione and Ron still looked worried but Alphonse merely grinned proudly.

"Thats Luna for you. She learnt her healing spells from me you know." He gushed with his cheeks red.

"But how could you teach that?" Hermione questioned, "We don't learn healing spells until year seven." Alphonse and Harry glanced at one another.

"About that, I'm not really sixteen. I promised Harry I'd fill you in on the details tonight. Can you wait until then?" He asked sweetly and Hermione sighed. How could anyone say no to that?

"Well if you promised." She reasoned, leaning back.

"And finally Students," Dumbledore's voice shattered their conversation. The sorting had long since been over and the headmaster was now concluding the final fact of the speech. "As most of you may know, Delores Umbridge resigned last year as the School's Supervisor." A ripple of laughter passed through the students, as the true meaning of Dumbledore's words came across. "However, the Ministry of Magic recognizes that Hogwarts does in fact have a need for a supervisor. Therefore, we have replacements."

Harry knew that the groan was to be expected. Everyone had hated Umbrige, so the supervisors were not exactly going to be welcome with open arms. Speaking of which, where were they? New teachers were always sat at the table from the very beginning, save for Moody of course but Professors Mustang and Elric were no where to be seen. But of course fate had it that at that very moment the side door was flung open and two figures barged in. Students gasped, Alphonse sighed, Edward complained and Dumbledore chuckled.

"These will be the new Hogwarts Supervisors, Edward Elric and Roy Mustang. Professor Elric will also be taking on the class of Theory, available to years five and above." He summarised, gesturing happily towards the two.

Roy Mustang, being the heartthrob that he is, smiled disarmingly and waved towards the students. The females imparticular sighed dreamily. Edward, on the other hand, merely dropped himself into his seat and grumbled about having to sit next to Mustang. Roy joined him and the two started up another conversation in hushed tones until they felt the weight of thousands of prying eyes upon them. Dumbledore smiled patiently.

"You know last year, our supervisor held a speech. Would you mind?" He explained and both of them sighed and rose to their feet. Edward beat Roy to it.

"Hello Hogwarts, yes we're from the ministry, don't hate us for it. Thats annoying. We know that Umbrige was a c..." He was promptly cut of by a hand over his mouth. Roy shot him a "behave" look, before picking up where Edward left off.

"What I believe Professor Elric is trying to say is that we feel the need to rebuild the Hogwarts/Ministry relationship and hope to be both fair and helpful to you during this school yea...ARGH you little bitch!" Roy exclaimed, causing everyone except for Dumbledore, to jump as he quickly withdrew his now saliva soaked hand. Edward smirked, washed his mouth out with wine and turned back to the students.

"Basically," He continued, placing his hands on the table "we will be holding detention but their will be no hand carving."

"Unless you call him short." Roy added.

BANG! Roy's head was slammed into the table and not very gracefully at that by Edward. And that was how the speech came to a close. On all four tables, there were mixed reactions. There were the 'desperatly trying not to laugh' students, the 'Nooooo don't slam his handsome face' students, and of course the 'how do they expect to be taken seriously as teachers, if they act like a comedy act' students. The last one being mainly Hermione.

Alphonse groaned.

"I'm really sorry about my brother, you three. He's one of the most socially inept people I know." He explained, absently stabbing his fork into the food that appeared in front of him. Harry shot him a sympathetic look.

"I've suffered a few weeks of it, I can't imagine my whole lifetime." He laughed. Alphonse smiled.

"He is wonderful though and I firmly believe that any violence that occurs when Roy Mustang is in the room with him can be considered provoked." They all laughed this time, Harry included until he felt a chill down his spine. He turned to see Edward's golden eyes staring right back at his. They were most likely wishing a painful death upon him. So Harry jumped to change the subject.

"So, I wonder what Theory class is like."

* * *

Later that night, The Golden Trio sat in the chairs that they over the years had marked as their own. Alphonse joined them on the large, overly cushioned sofa and smiled patiently at them.

"So I decided that the best approach to this was not to tell any of you any lies." He reasoned and threaded his fingers together. Harry and Hermione glanced at each other. That was a first. No one ever gave them straight answers, that was why things often ended in chaos "In regards to our age, it depends how you look at it. I am eighteen but my body is well beyond sixty." He explained. "Ed is the same. We are alchemists and we come from another world. If you put it bluntly. Any questions?"

Alphonse smiled, knowing full well that they had a great deal of questions. After a pregnant pause, the three friends launched into their drilling.

"Why are you at Hogwarts?"

"Why did you offer to tutor me?"

"Is it in order to protect him?"

"Are you and your bother romantically involved?"

Alphonse held up his hand and looked at them.

"Ok first, we are at Hogwarts to collect information. It helps us stay close to Harry and is a nice break from the Muggle business. Second, we're tutoring Harry because of reasons I will not reveal and no it is not to protect him. And third, please excuse my language but what the hell Ronald? No, of course, Brother and I aren't. What gave you that idea"

"Well..."

The conversation was cut short when the potrait door was flung open and in stepped the very brother they had been speaking of, along with two girls from Harry's year. They were nattering away eagerly at Ed yet anyone with an ounce of sense could tell that the blonde had given up listening to them ages ago.

"Alphonse, I came to see how you were doing." Ed said waving the girls to bed nonchalantly. "Have they cornered you?" He asked with a smirk. Alphonse whimpered.

"Ronald thinks we are a couple, Brother." Edward raised his eyebrows then let his face twist into disturbance.

"Really? That's sick Weasley, whats wrong with you?"

Before Ron could even begin to stutter an excuse of being scarred into thinking these things the conversation was lauched back into action. However, try as they might, the Trio just did not seem to learn anything. That was until the next day.

* * *

"WHAT!" Harry spat out his juice all over Colin Creevey's face at breakfast. In his trembling hands he held the Daily Prophet. It was open to a long article and on the front was the picture of a man they all knew too well. Harry's eyes widened in horror as he continued to take in the information.

Hermione joined him at the table, grabbing a piece of toast and absentmindedly asking what was wrong.

"Sirius....he...Sirius has gone missing." Harry stuttered in reply, sending the article over to Hermione. "It says that after finally clearing his name, and shaving, he went missing in the Ministry about mid-july." Ron sat down.

"Listen... Mate." But Harry was not listening.

"Oh God what if something happened to him? What if it was Death Eaters?" Hermione frowned and quickly hushed him.

"Harry you can't talk about You Know Who around here. People think he is dead you know." Ron and Hermione took turns to explain. Their synchronization seemed to be getting better along with their relationship, Harry noted reluctantly.

"I have to find out." He snapped, slamming the paper down onto the table.

"I thought you might say that." Harry, Ron and Hermione whipped their heads around to find Edward, in his hand he held a wand which he was twirling lazily round his fingers and on his mouth he wore a knowing smirk. Behind him, Alphonse was stood, wondering how they were going to pull off his Brother's whim this time. Edward's grin widened. "That is why, Dear Harry, I have formed a class trip to the ministry." Harry raised an eyebrow.

"Why would you do that?" He asked. Edward tutted.

"Because its a brilliant learning oppotunity." He explained only adding 'and that bastard owes me money' as an afterthought.

* * *

It sucked I know but in my defense, the sixth book does suck. Nothing happens. I have to come up with more things and that takes time Dx So I am sorry about the wait. There is no excuse to it other than that I forgot completely about this story.


	10. The Ministry of Go fuck Yourself Mustang

Woooow 2200 words. I am good 8D Although it is expected this was meant to be out 2 months ago T_T. ...sorry

* * *

Chapter X

**Cherry Syndrome**

"So what do I take to the ministry anyway?" Ron wondered out loud, looking at his heaps of school books that had been thrown rather unceremoniously on the dormitory floor. "And why have we never had a class trip before?"

"Because Dumbledore is a tight arse." Came Dean's muttered reply as he himself fiddled through the contents of his trunk.

"Well Ronald, I think that your wand would be a brilliant place to start." Hermione, as helpful as always, lightly suggested with a bright smile on her face. Harry chuckled and hoped that Ron would not catch on to the obvious sarcasm caked upon that comment. However, Ron Weasley was not that thick. He shot her a filthy look before snatching up his wand and muttering that it was already part of his ingenious plan. Hermione's comment also did not go unnoticed by Dean either.

"Hey Harry, what's a bird doing in our dormitory anyway. We're not allowed in thiers after all."

Ron scoffed.

"As if Hermione counts as a girl. She's more like an honorary bloke. Right Hermy?" How Ron managed to look surprised when he received a scowl and a pillow to the face as an answer was beyond Harry.

"Yes I am a 'bloke' aren't I. Well then Ronald, seeing as I am nothing but a 'bloke' I best start behaving like a 'bloke' shouldn't I?" She snapped closing in on him as he subconcsiously backed away from the oncoming storm. "Then I'll start by this. You 'blokes' quite obviously don't have a brain cell between you. So that's the last time I lend you my notes." In one fluid motion, Hermione snatched the riddiculously tall pile of parchments from Ron's bedside and stalked out of the room with nothing but a swiftly muttered goodnight to Harry.

Ron was left speechless.

"You know I don't think I've ever heard so many blokes in one passage." Harry commented with a note of wonder. With that he too departed to the bathroom, leaving Ron to ponder his own stupidity. And trust me, he did for the rest of the night.

* * *

"Now then kiddies, the Ministry of Magic is an extremely large and busy place, so I would like to set up some rules. Do not act stupid, do not ask stupid questions and most important of all do not wander off or I will hunt you down and beat you with a hockey stick." Edward shouted over the yeargroup.

They were gathered outside the telephone box, all almost jumping from such anticipation that the hockey stick threat was lost on them. Professor Elric sure knew how to start of a school year with a bang. There came a whine from one of the muggleborn students. It was quite obviously her first time there.

"Professor can we please go now." She said. Edward waved his hand dismissivley at her and continued speaking.

"Yes, yes we can go in as soon as one of you answers me this one question." His expression darkened as he turned around to face a particular person who was towering behind him. "WHAT in God's name are you fucking doing here Mustang?" He growled at the ever cheerful man. All Roy did in return was tutt and chirp in reply.

"Now, now, Edward you mustn't use that sort of vile language around the students. They are at an impressionable age you know." Several students as well as Roy, winced at the sound of cracking knuckles. "Ok, ok I'm here because I was asked to be." Roy smirked. "Unlike you I seem to be liked by the students. They practically begged me to come." Roy sniped and crossed his arms smugly. Who cared about the students a good banter was too fun to miss.

"You mean you're popular with the girls you stupid player. You do know that touching the students is illegal right? I hear Azkaban has a lovely section for perverts. You'd fit right in." With that Edward acheived what all people wish to do in their life. He drew a collective "ooooh" from the students. Nevermind the magic museum, this was real entertainment. Roy pouted which was something he would later deny.

"That's a little too harsh don't you think?"

"No it's not, now get your ass in the elevator." Edward snapped. "And I want only boy's in there with you, you hear me?" With that finally said the students filed their way into the lift and eventually out into the entrance hall of the Ministry.

"Wow their relationship is really rotten isn't it?" Harry muttered to Alphonse. They were, by now, quickstepping down the halls of the third floor of the ministry. Alphonse smiled and shook his head.

"I wouln't be so sure about that Harry. After all, despite all the complaining, Brother never once told Professor Mustang to leave did he?" Alphonse mused. Harry stopped midstep and raised his eyebrows.

"Ah..."

"Now one thing about the Ministry is that it is not only the largest office in the wizarding community, but it is also a museum containing bits and pieces of our history since the 1300's." Edward explained. "And why is this important? Its because in order to grow stronger you must understand magic and know its origin. That is what theory is going to teach you." He drew to a stop and ushered everyone to gather around.

"Now for some artifacts, who here has heard of the Mirror of Erised?" Every hand shot up and Edward nodded in approval. "Yeah everyone's heard of that one but here is a little known fact: That mirror was part of a pair." Edward stepped aside to reveal a glass cabinet containing what looked like a smaller version of the mirror they had all witnessed the destruction of the previous year.

"This boys and girls is the Mirror of Sterger. The reason why none of you have heard of it is because it is the mirror that no one can bear to look in because it will show you the one thing you regret the most." The class looked on in wonder until one daring student asked the question they were all dying to ask.

"What do you see Professor Elric?"

This was when the year six students of Hogwarts discovered that unlike their initial impression Professor Elric may not be as strong as they all thought. They all watched curiously as his bland, knowledgable look morphed into that of a sad smile.

"I have many regrets Mr Potter. Some of them I have even come to terms with. This one I still have problems with." Edward turned to look at the mirror. "I made the girl I loved cry. That something that even after getting over her, I could not forgive myself for."

The awkward silence fell once again the only thing heard was an almost inaudible whisper from Alphonse. That was until Roy's teachers instincts finally kicked in for the first time.

"Alright, I think we should move on to the next artifact." He declared, walking the students away from the mirror. All students save for Harry. Just as he was about to walk about he was grabbed by the collar and pulled to face the blonde professor, who's usual, irritated expression was back with a vengence.

"Tit for tat, Harry. What do you see?" He asked with an edge to his voice. Ok, so it was more of a demand. Without a moments hesitation Harry's eyes were drawn to the mirror but they did not stay there for long.

"Why is this important Edward?"

"Because, Harry, it will be important soon...trust me."

Harry sighed.

"I see Cedric..and Sirius...and Ginny..everyone who has been hurt because of me." Edward paused then a satisfied smile slowly began to makes its way over his face.

"Good, keep that in mind. It will help you bring your Godfather back. Now then, go back to the class." He ordered and Harry obeyed but to his surprise, Edward did not follow. Instead he was walking off into the other direction.

"Edward, where are you going?" The blonde stopped and turned back.

" You didn't actually think I came here just to teach did you? No, I've got some business to attend to. If they ask where I am, come up with an excuse would you? Oh and one more thing, tell Jackass-Mustang to take you to the Department of Mysteries with_out_ fucking around please. Thank you." And with that, Edward was gone, leaving Harry to process the bombardment of information.

* * *

The Department of Mysteries was back to its former glory but there was no surprise in that. It had been a whole summer after all. However, there were still tiny clues such as the significant drop in prophecies that gave away the battle of that spring.

It had been hard work trying to come up with an allibi for Edward, so in the end, Harry had resorted to the easiest solution. He told Roy the truth...He took it well.

"That stupid son of a bitch! No wonder he let me come along he wanted me to do his job." He groaned. "I bet he knows how much I hate work. That's why he did it." The sad thing was, neither the Golden Trio nor Alphonse could disagree with that.

"I'm really sorry about my brother, Professor Roy." Alphonse apologized. Roy sighed and looked wistfully at the sweet, polite, young student in front of him.

"He is a piece of work Mr. Elric. Oh why couldn't he be more like you? Are you sure you two are related?"

Alphonse just stared at the floor, his face an exhausting mix of fluster and shame. Roy could not help but take pity on him.

"Ok Alphon..I mean Mr. Elric, I'll take the class. But only for you." He said with a wink and turned towards the students and continue the class. Alphonse smiled gratefully. That technique had always worked on the Colonel as well.

"So where do you suppose Professor Elric has gone, Alphonse?" Hermione asked, prophecies were something she already knew of very well and there was something more important at hand. Alphonse shrugged.

"Brother mentioned that he needed to collect something from here." Alphonse replied thoughtfully.

"I've heard that one before." Harry said. Ron nodded.

"From Hagrid in year one, right?" Ron worded looking at his friend with understanding.

"But doesn't that seem a little far fetched. There's no way that the philosophers stone could be here." Hermione reasoned and Alphonse laughed a little.

"Yes that does seem quite far fetched." He mused.

Oh the irony-

* * *

"Hello Minister, I believe you have something for me." Rufus Scrimgeour looked up from his desk work to come face to face with a man he had only ever seen in books and datafiles. That was all he'd ever expected to see of him too but the rumours had been correct.

"You really don't age do you Mr. Elric?"

"Now that's not true, I've growna centimetre since I was last in this office I swear." Edward rushed, throwing himself into the visitor's chair across from the Minister. Rufus looked on in awe.

"...Last time you were here was ten years ago."

"It's perfectly normal for a man to grow so little." Edward reasoned.

"In their thirties yes, in their late teens not at all, you..." He continued but was cut off.

"Are you going to give me the stone or not Scrimgeour?" Edward snapped, narrowing his eyes threateningly.

The file had been right afterall: Avoid discussions on height at ALL costs.

Rufus nodded and pulled out his wand. He whispered a quick unlocking charm on the third desk down and retrieved a small wrapped package. He placed it on the desk between them.

"You'd think the Aurours would know that a philosophers stone cannot be destroyed." He muttered, eyeing the package. To this Edward got to his feet and opened the package, from his pocket he retrived a silver chain.

"They do know...well they sort of do."

"What do you mean?" Rufus asked, intruiged by Edward's actions. The man was making a necklace out of one of the most powerful stones in existence. Was that really the best way to keep it safe.

"Well _your_ philosophers stones can." Edward threw the chain around his neck. "_Ours _cannot, they're made out of significantly stronger stuff." He explained. The minister leaned forward.

"And what 'stuff' would that be Mr. Elric." Edwards face twisted into that of disgust.

"Human being's Minister." Rufus mouth opened into an "oh" before he shut it. Edward was on his feet and already halfway to the door.

"You'll be a target with that on Mr. Elric. You cannot let it fall into the wrong hands." He warned even though he had a feeling that Edward was more than capable of standing up against enemies.

His feeling was confirmed when a smile spread across the mysterious man's face.

"Don't worry Minister, I can take care of myself."

With that Edward tucked the new pendant beneath his shirt and exited the room.

* * *

I am making mah own action. I'll try not to dissapoint. The Mirror of Erised may seem like a recycled idea but I love that damn thing too much to leave it alone. Oh and the stone that Edward picked up is NOT Flemmings one and is also NOT the main point to this story but quite possible the next one.

And for those who are wondering cause I cant be arsed to check if I've already said it. Al's body is back as well as Ed's leg. But his arm is still metal meaning he has NOT yet lost his alchemy. Oh and write in your review how you feel about FMA ending. I dont know if I should smile or cry xD.


	11. Alchemy and Reports

Chapter XI

**Cherry Syndrome**

Once a rebel, always a rebel, it was a habit Harry was having a tough time getting rid of. However, this time he swore to Merlin it was not his fault…Honestly. He had not meant to lose the rest of the Hogwarts's students. He had just been distracted.

The Department of Mysteries had been rather tedious, as a matter of fact. Harry realised that the dark, tunnels that wound their way like earthworms through the Ministry's complex were banal, when observed in a more peaceful situation. The echoing of his footsteps on the marble floor of the seemingly abandoned department and the desert like scenery surrounding the veil, only served as a reminder of Harry's inert fascination with the monument.

This interest came mainly from the abnormal dreams that had been plaguing him during the summer. He said abnormal because although nightmares were sadly, something that Harry experienced a lot, they were different. These dreams did not have Voldemort in them. Instead, there was Sirius and a woman. Harry knew her only from newspapers. Sirius had been with the convicted Death Eater, Bellatrix Lestrange. But what worried Harry most of all was Sirius' lack of contact.

Two whole months and Harry had not heard a word. In all honesty, the last time Harry had so much as caught a glimpse of Sirius Black, it had been at this spot. The very spot he was rooted to now. The image may not have been real but that did not matter. The voices told him so.

"I must be crazy" Harry muttered under his breath.

After having wandered the corridors aimlessly in no real attempt to find his class, Harry had found this room, if you could call it that. This, hall was massive and containing only one thing, the Veil behind which the shadows dwelled and despite his musings, no, Harry was not crazy. Because the shadows really were speaking to him, in hushed tones they slowly drew him in. Very much the way the Dementors would, but thankfully something stopped him.

Harry jolted out of his trance. They were not just any voices. They were familiar ones. He could not put his finger on them, save for one. One voice seemed to resonate louder than the others and this one Harry knew. It was Sirius.

_Harry….Harry….Harry….._

He inched closer to the veil, trying to peer through the soft curtains, but there was nothing. Through the veil, Harry saw only the other end of the chamber.

_Harry…..Harry….Harry…_

A cold wind crept around his feet. It snuck beneath the hems of his trousers and up his ankles. Harry shivered _'Sirius?' _and ever so slowly, reached out to pass his hand through the veil.

"Grab him!"

What happened next came as a surprise to the mighty Boy Who Lived. When next thing he knew, he found his mighty self, on his back in the sand. Someone had thrown him to the floor. Without missing a beat, Harry found a footing and scrambled back from his assailants. This move turned out to be unnecessary when the faces staring back at him were none other than Ron's and Al's. Ron was the first to speak.

"Merlin, mate, I had no idea that sand was so hard to run in." He muttered, sinking his hands into the sand beneath them.

"But Ron, you spent a whole summer in Egypt." Alphonse commented, remaining on his feet.

"How do you know that?" Ron asked. Alphonse did not bother responding but instead jumped back to Ron's previous observation.

"I must say it's a very bizarre choice of flooring, especially with something so dangerous here." This caught both Harry and Ron's attention. Their eyes turned warily to the veil looming over them. "I suppose it's hard to slip in sand." Alphonse continued.

"What do you mean by 'dangerous'?" Ron questioned but Harry interrupted Alphonse's reply.

"Al, I heard Si…someone's voice." He rushed and was satisfied with the surprised look that crossed the blonde's face. "What does it mean Al?" Alphonse looked up to the Veil in thought then look back down.

"Harry it has to do with our lessons." He explained. "You see this is called a Veil. It…."

"Mr. Potter." Sadly, Edward chose this exact moment to interrupt their conversation. At the bottom of the slope stood the rest of the class along with Roy and a very smug looking Edward Elric. The blonde crossed his arms and a self-satisfied smirk took its place on his lips.

"I seem to recall saying something earlier today about anyone running off being lynched and beaten with a hockey stick." He drawled. "Were you not listening to my lecture Mr. Potter?" There were nervous glances exchanged among the students as Harry rose to his feet and made his way down to the group. Edward was new at the school and chances were he would do well to his threat. Harry had known him longer though and thought otherwise. Or perhaps he was just tired of living, because when he reached his frowning professor, Harry put on a cheeky grin in reply.

"I'm sorry Professor, seeing as you are such a hypocrite, I assumed it would be ok." A collective gasp followed in reply but Edward only bothered to raise an eyebrow. They stared each other down for a moment as the rest of the group held their breath. Edward's previous record would cause you to think that he would have exploded but that did not happen. Instead he turned his back on Harry and flicked his golden hair over his shoulder.

"Detention, Potter, tonight and you too Weasley." He ordered, ignoring the groan from the redhead and stalked off. The rest of the class scurried after him but Harry grabbed onto Alphonse's sleeve and held him just a few steps behind the group. Something had caught his eye when Edward had walked away. A small, silver chain was now around his neck but, Harry was sure it had not been there before.

"Hey Al, what's that around Edward's neck?" He asked, catching Ron and Hermione's attention with it.

"Hm? Oh that's a present from the Minister. It's…something important. He's been charged to look after it." Alphonse explained.

"Is that why Professor Elric brought us here then disappeared? He went to see the Minister." Hermione questioned "Because frankly, I cannot think of how this visit -as interesting as it has been- is relevant to Theory Class." Alphonse smiled at her.

"My brother is very much into multitasking. He wanted to bring you here to show you what magic is like outside of Hogwarts. Believe it or not, things are very different. No doubt he will be questioning you on the system they have in the ministry." He explained. The cogs in Hermione's mind were almost visible as she stored that information for later use. "On the other hand, the Minister also charged him with looking after something and I can't tell you exactly what it is but it is something you've dealt with before."

"Alphonse! Would you help me please?" Alphonse was artfully interrupted by what was, of course, Roy's cry for aid. All four of them looked up to see Roy caught in a headlock, by a furious looking Edward. The cries coming from the blonde gave away that a height insult had been thrown prior to the headlock. Alphonse sighed.

"Honestly, Brother, how are the students meant to take you seriously if you are assaulting other professors." He bid the trio goodbye before running off to save the Minister official, whose face was a lovely shade of purple now. Harry, Ron and Hermione were left alone to ponder what Alphonse had just said.

"Well at least it's something familiar." Hermione offered with a meek smile.

"Yay, what have we got to choose from? A philosophers stone, an evil diary, a prison escapee, and You Know Who." Ron muttered darkly. Harry grinned at his friends and threw his arms around them.

"Come on Ron, let's be positive, we did it once we can do it again." Harry said brightly.

"You git, you got me detention, I'm allowed to be a little negative." Ron muttered darkly. "Besides who's to say we'll be as lucky this time round." Harry laughed.

"At least, we have the Ministry worker on our side this time round." He offered and all three of them looked up to where Alphonse was lecturing his grumbling brother. As if feeling the eyes on them, the brothers turned to meet eyes with the trio. Alphonse smiled and waved and Edward, in a fit of immaturity, stuck his tongue out at them and stalked off. A small smile spread across Ron's lips.

"Something tells me that doesn't count for much, mate." He sniggered.

* * *

The sixth year Hogwarts students returned just in time for lunch and of course just in time for potions class. To say that Harry and Ron were thrilled would be an exaggeration….a colossal one. Their hopes of escaping potions were shattered the moment Professor McGonagall saw them watching the new meat search for classrooms. Instead of spending the afternoon enjoying the rapidly decreasing sun, they had to head to the dungeons and endure an hour and a half of potions.

Upon entering the classroom Harry noticed several things. A good thing was that both Alphonse and Hermione were in the class. A bad thing was that because he had not planned on taking the class he had no books. And a weird thing was that all of the girls were currently circling a cauldron with very creepy looks on their faces.

"Ah Mr. Potter!" Slughorn could not have looked happier to see him. "Why don't you and your friend go and grab some books and join the rest of us." And so, after a quick tussle Harry found himself stood between Alphonse and Ron, listening to the girls rhapsodize about love potions, with a tattered book signed by some bloke called 'The Half Blood Prince' in his hand…..Well at least Snape was not there.

The love potion in question had Harry feeling uneasy. He did not want to come off as arrogant but he was sure that one of the girls, he did not know her name, was giving him a predatory look. And he was not the only one; Ron had been glancing nervously at Lavender Brown since they took their places. Hermione was just behind them, probably wishing a painful death on the both of them. Funnily enough, the only person who did not seem affected was Alphonse. His draught of Sleeping Death was already in full swing.

Not that Harry's potion was not. The book he had initially thought of as useless was covered in notes. Extremely useful notes even. The Half Blood Prince must have been a prodigy at potions because he was ahead of Alphonse and even Hermione. That was why it was no surprise when the prize, liquid luck was awarded to him. Hermione, on the way back to the dorms, was seething.

"Did you know that liquid luck doesn't so much affect the situation as it does a person's intuition?" Alphonse said conversationally. It did not help.

"Well, Harry is not going to actually keep it. It's not fair, he cheated." Hermione scoffed as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. Judging by the look exchanged by Harry and Ron, it was not.

"Hermione, it could do him the world of good. He'd have to be barking mad to give it back." Ron retorted for his best friend. "I wish I'd gone for that book."

"Well yes Ronald, it certainly could have saved you from failing your exams. I can't see how else you'll pass them. Anyway, don't you boys have detention to go to?" She chirped before skipping ahead, leaving them dumbfounded.

"You know what the amazing thing is? I don't think she actually meant offense with that." Harry said.

"No, no, that was pure concern." Alphonse agreed. "So should I take you to my brother's office?"

"But Alphonse, you don't have detention." Ron replied to which Alphonse merely smiled.

"Yes, but I don't need detention to spend time with my brother. Besides, something tells me you'll need my help."

* * *

Edward's office was just as cluttered as their house on Privet Drive had been. There were books everywhere, papers scattered across his desk and an owl nestled on a cupboard in the corner. Harry was not surprised to find the room in such a state, after having spent so much time with the Elrics during the summer. What did surprise him though was that Edward had achieved this level of mess within three days.

"Edward how can you find anything in here?" Harry marveled. Edward looked up from the book he was buried in.

"That's easy. Class work over there," he nodded towards a pile closer to the front, "and personal things everywhere else. I run a very organised ship here. Oh and call me Professor Elric." He muttered returning to his books. Ron looked around the room in dread.

"We're not going to have to tidy this for detention are we?" Edward scoffed.

"No Mr. Weasley, I wouldn't let you get your noses into any of this." He said and rose to his feet. "No for your detention we will be having a little chat, starting with Dumbledore's Army." Edward walked around the desk and leaned casually against it, so that he was facing them. The boys started.

"…Why?" Harry asked, not even bothering to ask how he found out. Alphonse replaced his brother in the chair and spoke in his place.

"Because, judging by your relationship with your current DADA teacher, we assumed it would probably be starting up again. We were just wondering if you were planning on teaching them what we taught you." Harry shook his head. It was true that Dumbledore's Army had been a brilliant idea. It had worked better than any of them could have hoped, but the thought of starting it up again had never crossed his mind. Snape may be a horrible person but at least he taught them.

"Would you want me to teach them Alchemy?" He asked. Now, it was the Elric brothers turn to shake their heads.

"No, that's what we wanted to talk to you about." Alphonse said.

"Alchemy is dangerous, we know that from personal experience and we don't want you to be too open with what we've taught you. In fact, it would be best if you kept it to yourself." Edward cut in. At this point, Ron cleared his throat, catching the attention of all of them. Edward moved his gaze to Ron who shifted uncomfortably under it.

"Urm…Professor, if this is so secret, why am I here?" Edward smirked.

"That's a good question Weasley. You're here because; when I mentioned this to Dumbledore he said I should include you and Granger too. He reckoned Alchemy would come in handy in the near future. Sadly, Granger isn't really one for rule breaking so I had no excuse to bring her up here." He added as an afterthought.

"Yeah that's definitely a bad thing." Ron laughed. "So what you're saying is that Dumbledore's Army is not going to be started up again but instead, we're going to be having private lessons."

"Yes, we will be teaching you Alchemy. The reason is simple. Harry, has Dumbledore spoken to you about Voldemort yet?" Harry nodded.

"Yes, he told me about how Voldemort has something special keeping him alive. He just doesn't know what it is yet…but it's something to do with Slughorn." He elaborated, reciting what the Headmaster had told him. Edward smiled.

"Exactly, well if Dumbledore's theories are correct, which we'll have to prove first, then Alchemy will help you destroy Voldemort's lifeline and in turn, Voldemort himself." The smile on Edward's lips changed just a little, but suddenly there was a gleam of excitement in his amber eyes. "Think you two are up to that?" The change in atmosphere was almost instantaneous. Ron and Harry looked at each other with a new found determination before they turned back and grinned at Edward.

"You should have told me sooner. I would have been far more committed to my studies." Harry laughed.

"No you wouldn't." Edward snorted in reply. "Oh and one of you had better tell Granger too." Harry did not have time retort because at that very moment:

'_Knock knock'_

The door opened. Edward without having to look knew instantly who it was.

"What did I tell you about time Mustang?" He growled. Roy was stood confidently in the doorway, with his arms crossed loosely across his torso.

"Edward its nine 'o'clock, I'm getting better aren't I? Anyway, that's beside the point, tell me you didn't actually give these boys detention? It's the first week. A little harsh don't you think?"

The cool façade that Edward had managed to maintain in front of the students was gone and he was once again the ever temperamental man he was around Roy. Edward pushed himself off the desk and walk briskly towards Roy, not stopping before he was mere inches away from him.

"What do you want Mustang?" The blonde spelled out threateningly. Roy did not back down, instead he glanced towards the boys behind him.

"It seems you've forgotten our arrangement Edward. Hey boys, why don't you go back to the dormitory? Professor Elric and I have a few things to discuss." The request could not have come sooner. Ron and Harry were out of the room like a bat out of hell. Alphonse on the other hand lingered in order to wish his brother good night.

"I'll be sure to tell Hermione what we spoke about Brother. Good night." He smiled. Edward sighed and took a step away from Roy to look at Alphonse.

"Night Al." He smiled softly, and then with one final nod, the door shut and Edward and Roy were alone together.

"So...what were you discussing with them." Roy asked innocently. Amber eyes returned sternly to him.

"Don't even bother pretending you weren't listening at the door. I'm not stupid Mustang." Edward snapped. Roy shrugged.

"Alright, first off Edward, if I'm not going to call you Mr. Elric, then you are not going to call me Mustang. It's Roy and furthermore so what if I was listenin…." Now, Roy was going to continue but something caught his eye and stumped him, leaving him speechless. Edward was stood away from him with his nose shoved in a book. Of course, this was nothing odd but as Roy looked closer a small grin slowly spread its way across his face.

"Edward, are you blushing?"

"No!" The reply came just a little too quickly. It would not have made a difference anyway, because there on the tips of the blonde's ears was just the tiniest tinge of pink. Roy laughed.

"You are!" He said gleefully. "Merlin! Is the thought of calling me by my first name that arousing to you?"

"Shut up Mustang or I'll wring that pretty, little neck of yours." Edward growled. "I…I just can't call you R...by your first name. It's too weird." He continued to mumble inching further and further away as he spoke. It was one thing calling him Mustang but one whole other leap referring to him as Roy. That would be too much like acknowledging that this man was not the Colonel.

Roy raised an eyebrow at Edward's silence.

"Hey Edward, I'm not going to force you to call me Roy. Admittedly it is a bit weird for you not to but…."

"…Roy."

They both stopped. Ever so slowly Roy took a step towards Edward and leaned down to come face to face with him. They stared at each other mutely, just taking in the others expressions. After a few minutes of silence, a smile graced Roy's face.

"Well, what do you know Edward? Looks like you survived." He murmured. Ed once again took a step away, not trusting himself to have the nerve to answer. Roy shrugged when he realised he would not be receiving an answer. "So shall we get started then? I promised the Minister we'd have this report in by the end of the week." He continued, pulling out a few fresh pieces of parchment and a quill.

"What are you doing making promises without me?" Edward huffed, walking over and signing his name on the paper. Roy did not answer him but merely sat down and began writing. Edward sighed. "Best get started, I suppose." He leaned over in order to see what his colleague was writing; only interjecting every now and then. This system worked rather well for the next twenty minutes but sadly, the harmony was not meant to last longer.

"Thank you by the way." Roy said, grinning over the report. Edward blinked at him in confusion.

"Thank you for what?" He asked, pausing to look at Roy. The grin on the man's face became a smirk.

"You know I never really thought of my neck as pretty."

…..Due to certain delays involving Roy's head and Edward's fist, the report was not handed in on time.

* * *

That makes 3500 words xD. Sorry this chapter was meant to be out aaages ago but I am trying to make them longer. 2000 words are really not enough, especially if I'm being a lazy arse and only updating once every couple of months. Sorry, about that but thank you to all who have stuck with me

See you next chapter.

PS. My spell check is refusing to let me change my language setting from English (US) to English (UK) so the spelling may be a bit of a mix in certain places. Blame Sebastian (That's my laptop)


	12. The Room of Requirement

Chapter XII

Cherry Syndrome

"So I really get to take Alchemy classes?"

"Whoa! Careful Hermione, don't get too excited."

"Oh shut up Ronald."

Harry and Ron informed Hermione of the news first thing, the next day. They were sat in the Great Hall having breakfast discussing the events of the day before. The best thing was that it was Saturday. No one had any classes to go to, aside from Hermione who at that moment had half the mind to hunt Edward down and being classes immediately. Unfortunately, no one had seen had seen neither him nor Alphonse all morning.

"Al was gone from the dorm this morning, they probably had something to do together." Harry provided, poking his food in thought. Hermione tapped her chin.

"True…bit odd though, don't you think." She said but within seconds of this comment, Alphonse dropped into the seat beside her.

"Good Morning, sorry I wasn't there this morning; my brother wanted me to hunt down a book for him." All three of the trio turned their heads. Sure enough, Edward was now sat in his seat beside Roy as if he had been there all morning. Hermione watched the professor fiddle with the collar of his shirt before returning her attention to the matter at hand.

"What kind of book?" She asked. Alphonse shrugged.

"Nothing special, just something to do with protective spells." He replied. "I think it's probably something to do with the Order. Why he couldn't just search on his own escapes me."

"Maybe he just wants to spend time with his little brother before class starts." Ron offered.

"Which is in five minutes actually." Harry said, rising to his feet. Alphonse followed suit. "Al, will you be alright, you barely ate anything." Alphonse shrugged.

"I don't eat much. It's ok, so what do we have now then?" He asked and Harry grinned bitterly.

"Divination, you're going to love this." Ron chuckled at his friend's comment before they got to their feet and left the room.

* * *

Despite, what one may think, Alphonse had been telling the truth. Edward really had woken him up at five in the morning to have Alphonse help him to look for spell books. The librarian, Madam Pince may not inhabit the library however its doors were always open.

Yes, it had all been true except for the fact that the spells had not been for the Order. They had been for the philosopher's stone currently chained securely around Edward's neck. The Elrics had been hoping for a way to make it undetectable. Voldemort's interests may have moved on since his last attempt to win a stone however this stone was not from the wizarding world and whether the Dark Lord knew of it or not, it was so much stronger.

Edward's fingers went subconsciously to his chest, tracing the outline of the stone pensively.

"Professor Elric?" The blonde looked up only to be faced with the innocent face of one of his students. "Professor is everything alright?"

"Pardon me?" Edward blinked slowly, causing the girl to blush.

"I'm sorry; you just looked kind of…lost. I was wondering if you needed any help." The girl smiled, brandishing her Ravenclaw prefect's badge. The cogs in Edward's brain finally seemed to kick into gear again.

"Oh no, thank you Miss…?"

"Bell, Professor, Katie Bell." She said humbly. Edward nodded.

"Thank you Miss Bell. No I was just a little lost in my own thoughts." Edward smiled. "I'll be heading to class now, thank you."

Katie acknowledged Edward's words with a small nod.

"Well then, Professor," she turned in the opposite direction on the way to her next class.

"Miss Bell!" Edward exclaimed. The girl stopped mid step and once again turned to look at Edward. He smiled. "Nice locket."

…

"Thank you Professor."

* * *

The room of requirement was a mess as always. It never really occurred to him how many people must want things to disappear. Whether its evidence of a prank committed or a deep, dark secret, Hogwarts' students always came to the same place.

Draco walked hesitantly through the clutter in search of the object he had imprinted to his memory. He reasoned that it had to be towards the back, hidden from the world, because otherwise it would be in no way permitted to exist. It was this very sense of taboo that made Draco all the quieter as he inched he way through the room. No one may have been in the room at the time but he could not bring himself to do otherwise. The very rustle of his footsteps made him flinch.

And so, just as he stumbled over a discarded wheel (Merlin knows why that was there), he found it. Right in front of him, covered in dust but still an identical match to the one he had seen barely a fortnight ago. Shivers ran down his spine as his hand reached ever so slowly to the dust ridden curtain that covered it. But the hand never made it. Mere millimetres before he made contact, the sound of the door handles, accompanied by the heavy shifting of the door reached Draco's ears.

Draco's eyes widened and he did the first thing that crossed his mind. He ducked into the shadows behind the cabinet and waited for whoever it was to leave. The person did not, quite the opposite. The breath caught in Draco's throat as the footsteps grew closer and a soft, searching, humming floated through the room.

From the shadows, Draco watched as the Gryffindor boy slid his finger across a bookshelf that only contained three books. The rest of the shelves were occupied by trinkets and contraptions. However, despite the all the interesting objects around, the boy went straight for the books. His dainty fingers reached out and expertly flipped through the book as if absorbing its contents. The amber eyes were reading so intently that they must not have seen Draco inch closer. After a non-committal look at the book, he wanted a closer look at the boy, because something seemed familiar. Perhaps it was the eyes, or even the posture, but Draco must have seen him before somewhere.

Suddenly the book slammed shut.

"Brother looked in entirely the wrong place. The really special books get left here." The boy mused and slipping both of the books under his arm left the room. After holding his breath for what seemed an eternity, Draco deemed it safe and stepped into the open. He looked at the place where the protection spell books had once stood and frowned. The boy had been his age and a Gryffindor. Whoever he was, it would not be hard to find out. The only problem was whether or not to let them know?

"One step at a time." He muttered under his breath before wrenching the cupboards door open and peering inside. "One step at a time."

* * *

"You know I'm worried about the students at this school," Edward huffed, taking the book from his brother's hands. "Today I actually had one of them ask me if there was a spell to make you smarter." Alphonse chuckled.

"And what did you tell them?" He asked, casually piling the papers Edward had left idly around the room.

"I told him that no spell in the world could account for his stupidity." He replied, as he made his way towards a seat.

"Brother did you really have to be that harsh? Isn't it a fairly reasonable question?" Alphonse questioned, taking pity on the poor student. "I'm sure if there was such a spell you would be a regular user of it." He reasoned, however Edward did not seem too convinced.

"Yes Al, about as reasonable as: "Oh Professor Elric could you pretty please give these chocolates to Professor Mustang from me?"" He muttered, quite convincingly mimicking the voice of some of the fifth year girls who had approached him. "As much as I hate the guy, I don't think I'd give him spiked chocolates. Someone should really warn Slughorn about teaching these kids about love potions."

"Ah we talked about those the other day. Apparently you can smell the scent of the person you're destined for." Alphonse said cheerily. Try as he might, a bit of him would always remain a hopeless romantic. "I wonder what mine would smell like…"

"Alphonse that is so beside the point, I'm not even going to dignify it with an answer." Edward answered passively, as he opened the book. The trance that came over Edward as he read slowly began to take its hold but Alphonse's final quiet words did not manage to slip past his brother.

"I can guess what yours would be Brother." Alphonse murmured, eyeing the cloak in the corner of the room that was at least two sizes too large to be his brother's. "It's already here if you look hard enough." And with that, he dropped into a seat himself to begin a thorough reading.

Had Edward been in a more alert state he may have registered the words and provided an appropriate response. It would have probably been something along the lines of asking Alphonse what in God's name he was on about, but as it was, the words merely lingered in the air. Not that Edward did not hear them, oh no, he certainly did, but perhaps it was just too early to be considering precisely what meaning they entailed. So for now, the brothers just sat in a comfortable silence, saving the harder things for later.

* * *

"So my money is on Philosopher's Stone." Ron commented as they traipsed their way around the corridors after dinner. Once again, neither of the Elric brothers had made an appearance. So as the trio made their way to the forbidden corridor that had been abandoned since their first year, they stumbled upon the topic of what they could possibly be up to. "Think about it, Edward certainly couldn't walk around with a diary around his neck. That would weigh him down too much." Harry laughed.

"Was that a slur on his height Ron, 'cause I'm pretty sure he'd have your head for that." He said. "Besides don't be too sure. I held that thing. The stone was pretty damn heavy. It was more like a rock really."

"Yeah but the Philosopher's Rock doesn't have the same ring to it does it?" Ron observed with a hint of laughter in his voice.

"I can see that you two are taking this seriously." Hermione pouted, crossing her arms. Her friends grinned at her.

"Always." They replied in unison to which she rolled her eyes and said.

"Well assuming Ronald is right, which would be a miracle in itself,"

"Oi!"

"Then why be so open about it? Last time we had to risk our necks getting through tasks to even see the thing." She continued, ignoring Ron.

"Well, maybe it's because Voldemort has better things on the mind right now. He's not after it specifically so fewer precautions need to be taken." Harry provided, shrugging.

"Or Elric is some sort of super wizard who could annihilate any thief within a second." Ron provided with an equally thoughtful expression. Hermione rolled her eyes.

"You idio…" But she never got to finish her sentence. Instead, a fourth voice joined the conversation, causing all three students to jump out of their skin.

"What's this I hear? Edward is a superhero? Well I never." Harry, Ron and Hermione whirled around to be greeted by the sight of, well let's face it; fate could have been nicer to them.

"Professor Mustang!"

"Oh wow perfectly synched as well. You know in the muggle world that's called a Korean answer." Roy said smiling at them. "But more importantly, it's awfully close to your bed times and what is this? You're heading in completely the wrong direction." He finished, raising a questioning eyebrow at them. Hermione, always quick to the rescue jumped in before the boys could say anything.

"It's my fault Professor. I wanted to research something in the library and insisted on Harry and Ron coming with me." She said putting on her classic, ashamed face. Roy smiled.

"That's quite alright Granger. Who am I to hinder a student's thirst for knowledge? But kindly leave it until tomorrow. I believe you will have plenty of time during the weekend. Run along now." Just as the trio made their way to leave, Roy's voice captured them once more. "And perhaps you can also find a map whilst you're at it. I wasn't aware that the library had been moved the West wing. "

Ron cursed under his breath and all three looked at the Professor in surrender. But Roy merely gave them a wink before he headed off.

"Sleep tight children."

Harry, Ron and Hermione watched the man leave curiously.

"He's quite cool you know." Ron commented in slight awe. "I mean, I thought he was a prick but he's saved our necks twice already and the terms barely started."

"I wonder where he's going." Hermione wondered, nodding absently at Ron's comment. Harry grinned.

"That's obvious. Edward's office is that way." He said as they all fell into step towards the Gryffindor tower. Hermione blinked in confusion.

"But they only have a meeting once a week; he has no reason to be there." This time it was Ron's turn to snicker.

"Exactly."

* * *

"Brother, I don't know what it is…but hasn't something seemed off to you." After three hours of silence and note taking, the two brothers finally dragged their chairs together to share results. Edward nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, I don't know what it is though." He said, putting his papers aside.

"I think I do. Harry's theory may just be right." Alphonse sighed wearily.

"You mean the one about Malfoy?" Edward asked. "You really think he's a Death Eater?" Alphonse nodded slowly and Edward sat back in his chair in thought. It was one thing if Harry said it. The boy had had a grudge against Malfoy since they had met but if Alphonse agreed with him then it was a whole other matter entirely.

"Well, maybe we should keep an eye on him." He suggested after a moment of silence. Alphonse nodded.

"Don't worry Brother, just leave it to me."

* * *

This was meant to be longer but I couldn't wait to upload it and now I'm off to church so it will have to do. I promise, even if that doesn't mean much, to have the next chapter out soon. Fuck my history test it can wait :P

Please Review


	13. Chocolate

Chapter XIII

Cherry Syndrome

A five week jump saw much change within Hogwarts. The students had taken time to settle and the auburn leaves were beginning to fall in the early October air. The change was brought about by Edward and Alphonse who as the time passed had found a charm to successfully mask the Philosopher's Stone. However that was not before Harry and his friends began to ask questions. One night during their weekly Alchemy classes, the trio had cornered them for an interrogation round. Nothing but the presence of the stone had been given away, however the brothers were now in a split decision.

"I'm just saying, Brother that perhaps they should know of its effects so that they know never to use it." Alphonse insisted. It was a Thursday and the Elric brothers were walking towards the Great Hall for dinner. Having not seen one another for most of the week, they took the small time to discuss the matter that had been looming over them since the previous class.

"Al, knowing about human transmutation is what put us into the position we were in in the first place. Harry has no parent's either. What if he reacts the same way we did?" Edward replied, shaking his head.

"He won't. If we tell him how they're made, no one in their right mind would want to use it." Alphonse argued.

"And yet they were used over and over again in Ishval." Edward sighed. Alphonse's faith in humanity was something that always separated him from his brother. It was one of the qualities Edward wished he could have sustained over the years but knew would have been impossible. Edward halted when he realised that his brother was no longer at his side. Instead, turning around revealed that Alphonse was a few paces behind him, rooted to the spot with a frown on his face.

"You shouldn't compare Harry to those monsters from the military. That's not fair." Alphonse stated with determination that made Edward do a double take. It did not make him waver though.

"And what about the Colonel? He's living proof that desperation can make people do the wickedest things." He refuted. "If he's still living that is." It was obvious that Edward's quiet murmur had not escaped Alphonse by the funny look that suddenly crossed the boy's face.

"Brother, the circumstances are completely different. Harry still has people who care about him and he is not half as helpless as we were. Just trust him a little, if we tell them the dangers of the stone then there is nothing to worry about. Besides, there's no way they will be able to reach the right skill level to perform such a transmutation anyway. And no matter what, the stone is with you. There's no need to worry, it's completely safe." Alphonse assured his brother soothingly. Edward smiled slightly at his brother in surrender.

"Fine, I'll get a lesson plan ready…but you better be right Al." He said as both continued their way to the Great Hall.

"More often than you are Brother, surely." Alphonse said smiling and falling into step with Edward. Edward scoffed.

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves shall we? I am still the almighty, genius, Fullmetal Alchemist." He said with a grin on his face. That one really did have Alphonse laughing.

* * *

One thing was clear, the cupboard was working, somewhat. Draco picked up the half eaten apple out of the cupboard curiously and eyed the bite marks. It was exactly the same one he had placed there, down to the very bruise and someone had held it in their hands on the other side.

So the plan was working….why did that not comfort him?

* * *

"Hey Edward, I've been meaning to ask. How are you classes going? Killed any students yet?" Edward frowned at the person who posed the question and swiftly removed the goblet that was keeping him from speaking.

"I would do no such thing Mu...Roy. Besides, how I conduct my class is hardly any of your business." He snapped, hoping silently that the harshness would distract from his slip up. It did not.

"Still having trouble with my name there Blondie? You'd think that for a young genius such as yourself it would be an easy change. But then again, child prodigies are meant to be socially awkward too." Roy mused, enjoying the look of complete outrage that was slowly crossing his colleague's face.

"I am NOT socially awkward. My students adore me," Edward insisted, hitting his hand to the table to underline his point. "And don't ever call me Blondie again." He threatened and for once it was completely justified. A month had seen little change in the relationship between Roy and Edward. The physical abuse may have dropped to a minimum. However the verbal was still alive and kicking. The two Ministry workers had settled into a comfortable, extremely loose friendship, if you could even call it that. Which Edward did not, of course. He insisted on it being a professional partnership and nothing more, which in its own way could be misinterpreted too. No one dared say this to the man's face, though.

"I did actually notice some girls holding you back earlier this morning. What was that about? Secret admirers?" Roy teased, artfully choosing to ignore Ed's comment.

"No, I maintain a completely professional relationship with my students, unlike someone I know." Edward countered with a roll of his eyes. Whilst he was speaking, Roy watched him reach into his cloak and withdraw a surprisingly….cutesy chocolate box. "These are for you." Edward tossed it to him unceremoniously. Now, if Roy's eyebrows were raised before, they shot past his hairline at this.

"Edward…you're giving me chocolates?" He said cautiously. "I wasn't aware that you bent that way." The question, however, would be in how sincere the slight twitch of the man's lips was. This lost its importance, though, as soon as Edward opened his mouth in reply.

"No you twat, they were from the girls you saw me talking to this morning. It was about you. They were pleading with me to give them to you. The chocolates didn't seem spiked so I surrendered myself to position of messenger." Edward muttered darkly. Roy blinked and returned his gaze to the chocolates in front of him.

"Well that's fine then isn't it?" Roy grinned causing Edward to raise an eyebrow, prompting him to continue. The blonde realised that he would regret this, though as the grin on Roy's lips widened.

"I mean, I'm pretty sure Hermes was tiny too. All you need is the boots now." Roy was not sure whether Edward understood the allusion or not. But the smug expression on his face slowly disappeared as the outraged one appeared on Edward's. "Now Edward….I'm pretty sure I recall you saying you weren't going to assault me anymo…."

"WHO ARE YOU CALLING TINY YOU BASTARD?"

Edward's shout rendered the buzzing student body silent as they all turned to see another one of the showdowns between the two eccentric professors. They were slowly but surely becoming increasingly rare but still retained their amusement. Edward was on his feet, glowering murder upon Roy who was poised casually against the teacher's table. The students were listening raptly. The teachers were murmuring that someone ought to stop them. And Dumbledore was beaming with something that was probably the nostalgia of being young and brash.

But no one was moving. It was obvious that Edward was struggling with his pride and the need to honour the agreement he had made with himself. So things stayed silent. Chance (or misfortune) had it that the heavy doors of the Great Hall chose this particular moment to creek open, revealing the student behind them.

Draco Malfoy was shocked to discover that upon his arrival, every head in the room turned to focus on him. He had thought that as per usual, the chatter would continue and no one would pay him heed. Instead, he found the school staring back at him and his feet were forgotten. Draco let his eyes trail to the teacher's table, hopefully seeking out Snape and an explanation. But he was faced with the sight of the new Magic Theory teacher and Hogwarts Supervisor on his feet, staring him down.

"Mr. Malfoy how nice of you to grace us with your presence."

Draco's expression dropped. Professor Elric was in a bad mood.

"I'm sorry Professor, I was not aware that I was being expected." He sneered. The clever thing would have been to apologize and scamper to his seat but the Malfoy pride would not have that. At least, that was what he would blame the snide remark on. The expression on the teacher's face darkened as he retaliated.

"Well let's hope you can make it on time tomorrow night when you honour me with detention Mr. Malfoy." Edward snapped. Malfoy's eyes widened at the drastic actions but he remained silent. The room spoke for him as it came to life once more. Members of the Slytherin table began to word their opposition. They were once more silenced when Snape rose slowly and dramatically to his feet.

"Professor Elric I do not see this as a suitable punishment for not arriving to dinner on time." Snape drawled, his eyes never leaving Edward. "I believe that perhaps, instead of kicking the cat. You should spend time working through your ridiculously, childish bickering with Professor Mustang." Roy's eyes widened and he held his hands up in the surrender position.

"Woah, please don't bring me into this."

If Edward was angry before, he was livid now. The glare across his face deepened by the double and his clenched knuckles turned white with pressure.

"Professor Snape, with all due respect, what I am doing is not kicking the cat. It is merely administering punishment where I see fit. Malfoy's attitude has been lacking recently and if you can view this as the final straw if you so wish." Edward forced out. The slow pace he was talking at made it obvious to everyone how much he was trying to contain himself. "I'm sure Professor Dumbledore would agree with my opinion." Edward finished, making all heads turn to face the headmaster. Until then, Dumbledore had remained completely silent, with the ever present twinkle in his eyes. But on cue, he exchanged a look with Snape, before facing forward again.

"I believe that if Professor Elric sees Mr. Malfoy's attitude as a long standing problem. Then the correct course of action would be to punish him accordingly." The headmaster stated calmly.

"But Professor Dumbledore…" Snape began. He was ready to defend the boy. He had been charged with his protection after all. However, he was cut short but the very subject of the conversation.

"It's ok, Professor Snape. I will attend detention." Draco muttered. Snape sighed.

"If you insist Headmaster. You too, Mr. Malfoy." A murmur rippled through the student body. Dumbledore took the chance to speak.

"Well now that the matter has been solved, let us return to the feast." He was received with cheers as the hall became animated once more. A small smile spread across Edward's face in triumph, until Dumbledore leaned across the table and ushered him closer. Roy followed suit, as Edward leaned forward curiously.

"Perhaps you and Professor Mustang could settle your disputes outside of meal times in future." The Headmaster suggested and leaned back when he saw fit. That would be when the self-deprecating laugh escaped Roy and the humiliated blush graced Edward's cheeks.

"Yes Professor Dumbledore." They both mumbled, refusing to look at each other.

* * *

"Harry, I'm telling you, hanging onto that book is a bad idea." Harry stopped his rapt study of the book in front of him to look curiously at Hermione.

"And why is that?" He asked. Hermione sighed and dropped into the seat beside him.

"Well first off, it's cheating." She began.

"You're just jealous that he's getting better marks that you now." Ron scoffed. "And that he's invited to join the Slug club now. Slughorn adores him now." Unlike his friends, Ron was passing his time by lying on the sofa tossing a ball into the air. The first Quidditch match was rapidly approaching and this meant Ron was on edge. It also meant he was harsher. Hermione frowned at him but it went unnoticed by the redhead.

"Ronald, this is not about Harry being better than me. If anything I'm glad that he's taken interest in the subject. What I'm worried about is that we don't know anything about this Half Blood Prince." Hermione snapped as she made a grab for the book. "And I'll have you know that he's invited me too." She added, trying to sound nonchalant but obviously wanting to rub it in. The smile though was replaced by a pleasant smile when Alphonse dropped into the seat beside her.

"Are you talking about the Slug club? I've been invited too." He said sweetly. Hermione brightened while Ron on the other hand scowled darkly. He sat up to stare at all of them incredulously.

"Have ALL of you been invited? He hasn't said a word to me." Without waiting for an answer, Ron lay back down again. "Even Ginny is going." He grumbled. Harry looked up from his book.

"Ginny?" He asked, ignoring the funny look Alphonse gave him. Ron nodded passively.

"Oh yeah, apparently she's brilliant. Proper wizz kid." Harry made a sound of acknowledgement but otherwise showed no sign that he had heard him. The group fell into silence as they all continued about their business. Alphonse allowed this to continue for a moment before he closed the book and cleared his throat to get the trio's attention.

"So I spoke to my brother." He began. Already, Harry, Ron and Hermione leaned forward attentively, knowing exactly what would be coming next. "We will teach you about this stone. Nothing practical though." Alphonse rushed, before they could interrupt them. "Not that any of you are at the level to do anything with the stone, but just in case." He reasoned, hoping his eyes could convey how serious he was.

"Why nothing practical?" Hermione whined. She out of all three was most eager to learn about the mechanics of a Philosophers Stone from another world. Alphonse sighed.

"Hermione, the stone that Edward has is different from the one you dealt with in your first year. I won't tell you anything now, but you must know that it is incredibly dangerous. We will teach you of that in class, I promise. But in return you must promise me something." Alphonse leaned forward and the trio followed suit. They were suddenly inches from one another. None of them dared to take their eyes off the usually calm boy. "You must promise me that if given the chance, no matter how desperate a situation you find yourselves in. You will never resort to using the stone." He stated clearly, inspecting every face, one by one.

A moment of utter silence passed amongst the group.

"We promise."

* * *

The familiar feeling of the corridors of Hogwarts at night put his nerves on edge. Harry was almost proud of himself for having lasted an entire month, without so much as considering sneaking out of his dorm at night. However, nothing lasts forever. He had not said anything, but Malfoy's exhibit at dinner earlier had got him curious. Malfoy could clearly not be trusted. Especially if he was crawling the empty corridors on his own. Harry could not believe that no one else saw it. Time and time again he has tried raising the subject with either Edward or even Dumbledore, but every time he would be brushed off.

So if no one was going to listen to him, he would simply have to take matters into his own hands. Safely enveloped by the Invisibility Cloak, Harry made his way towards the dungeons. He knew it was farfetched, but Malfoy had not appeared in his dorm on the Marauder's Map. Even if he could not find them, chances were that Malfoy was probably out tonight as well. And if this meant catching him red handed then Harry would risk it.

Harry pulled out the Marauder's Map for one final check. He was surprised to find that his and Malfoy's names were not the only ones out of place. It was nearing two 'o' clock in the morning, and both the names Roy Mustang and Edward Elric were placed comfortably in the library.

* * *

"So why didn't you stop me?" Roy looked up from his work to find Edward stood over him demandingly. Roy balanced his quill on the jar of ink, abandoning his work in favour of folding his arms attentively.

"Come again?"

"Giving Malfoy detention was completely irrational of me. Usually you'd be all over that. Why not?" Edward demanded once more. He had not meant to follow this question up with Roy. However, the thought had not left him alone.

"Well it may have been to avoid being assaulted." Roy provided, shrugging his shoulders nonchalantly. "Or it may have been because I believe you. Something about Mr. Malfoy is off."

Edward rose an eyebrow.

"So…you're helping me?" He questioned hesitantly. Roy's face dropped, as if this was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Of course I am. We're on the same side after all." He smiled. "Now fancy having a chat?" Roy gently pushed the seat opposite him out with his foot, prompting Edward to join him. With a sigh, Edward lowered himself into the seat. Roy returned to scribbling away at his report, only glancing up every now and then to check that the blonde was still there.

"So I've been thinking of passing an Educational Degree." Edward said conversationally as he pulled out a folder with his own work. Roy's quill stopped.

"Why? You know what Umbridge did last year. The students will hate us for it." Roy asked incredulously.

"I'm not suggesting anything drastic, just a couple of ground rules." For once in his life, Edward was sounding reasonable to Roy.

"Examples?" Roy urged, raising an eyebrow. What almost looked like a pout graced Edward's features.

"Examples being: A ban on chocolate and any such beverage that can be given as a gift." He snapped. Roy snorted.

"That's hardly fair Edward. Who are we to prevent the students from loving?" He smiled, going back to his work. "Are you just upset that no one has given you any yet?" Roy teased. It was a shame that Roy missed the blush.

"I am NOT upset. Why would I want any anyway?" Edward snapped, fidgeting in his seat. "I'm just annoyed at all the students who are poisoning their classmates when they should be focusing on work."

The sniggering did not cease there.

"Oh Edward, who knew you were such a prude?" He looked back up again to see murder in the young man's eyes. In an act to calm him down, Roy reached into his pocket and pulled out a small candy from the box the blonde had given him before. "Tell you what? Here I'll give you this." Edward's eyes widened as the sweet was dropped into his palms and a friendly smile spread across Roy's lips. "There you go. Now you're not unpopular anymore." Silence passed between the two and Roy returned to his work. After a while, Edward slowly rose to his feet.

"I'm going to bed." He mumbled walking away with his hands shoved into his pockets. Roy grinned and shouted after him.

"Good Night!"

Edward hummed in reply but did not stop until he was out of sight. When he had rounded the corner out of the library, he stopped and held out the hand holding the sweet in front of him. A small huff escaped his lips before his replaced the hand, along with the candy in his pocket.

"As if I would be happy from getting a present from a guy."

* * *

Oh yeah I'm back and I broke my 3000 word goal!I realised that compared to Anbu Pair, this was going incredibly slowly hence the 5 week skip. Also we couldn't have all the action happen within the first week at Hogwarts. That would render the Half Blood Prince completely useless.

Anyway, I noticed that certain details were off. Examples being Katie Bell is in fact Gryffindor not Ravenclaw and that really there is no way that Harry, Ron and Hermione could ever learn alchemy in the first place. I'd like to say, I'm sorry if these things upset you and I truly do value your opinions but these are small details I changed for the sake of the story. Besides, if everything were to be completely accurate then Edward and Alphonse would be about sixty anyway and who wants that?

So thank you for reading and please review. I'm going to eat now

Ps. This was actually finished within a WEEK of the other chapter but for some reason FF won't let me edit my stories...wwwwwhhhy D:


	14. The Woes of a Workaholic

Chapter XIV

Cherry Syndrome

The weekend promised to be very busy for Edward. To begin with, at this point, he was in his office awaiting the arrival of one Draco Malfoy for detention. As soon as dinner finished, Draco was meant to make his way there. Edward predicted that they would probably be spending most of the night together, as he was never one to let people off easy. So that was his Friday evening gone. Furthermore, it was a Hogsmede weekend and naturally, Edward was meant to go along with Roy and supervise. Then there was also the alchemy lesson for the three Gryffindors that same evening. This meant that any work for his actual class would have to be done on Sunday. And trust me; there was a lot of it.

So, all in all free time was not something Edward would have for the next few days.

_-knock knock- _

He sighed and with a flick of his wand, opened the door. It swung open to reveal Malfoy on the other side. He wore a frown on his face as he made his way into the room.

"Looks like you can be on time after all Mr. Malfoy. I'm impressed." The look on the Slytherin's face darkened slightly but he was obviously in no mood to argue.

"What will we be doing tonight, Professor?" He asked curtly, ignoring Edward's snide comment. Edward was once again forced to sigh as he recognized his own childish behaviour. After dinner last night, Al had pulled him aside several times, in order to discipline him on acting professional. So in order to act according to his age and not, well, his looks, Edward straightened himself out and assumed a more professional tone.

"You will be assisting me in marking reports from our class trip at the beginning of this year." He said, ushering Malfoy into the seat beside him and setting the papers in front of him. Malfoy blinked at the work.

"Professor, I don't think I'm exactly in the position to mark my classmates work." He said with the same even tone. He took one report and flipped through it nonetheless. Edward snorted.

"Mr. Malfoy, yours is one of the few I've actually read, it's better than the others by far. Although that's not really saying much, those other papers were an embarrassment to the Ministry. Besides, I'm not asking you to put a mark on them. Just write comments." Edward sat himself down as well and pulled out some papers of his own. "Trust me, you're in just the right position." Edward said, lazily going about his work.

Although his attention was returned to the reports, Draco continued to blink dumbly in confusion. That had almost sounded like a compliment, he mused to himself. He stopped this thought pattern though when he came across the name on the report in front of him. He had recognized the report as brilliant, so really he should have seen this coming: Hermione Granger. His nose wrinkled in disgust at the thought of having appreciated anything from that Mudblood's hands. He should mark it down…

"Oh and Mr. Malfoy one more thing." Draco looked up to meet the golden eyes or his teacher. Edward smirked, once he had his attention and continued. "No bias please."

….

Could the man read minds?

Draco moved his gaze to the bookshelf directly opposite him and pondered on this very fact. It took a while before he shook his head at this ridiculous thought and returned to the folder. However, something lingered in his mind. He had seen something important…what had it been? Draco looked up once more to the bookshelf and found just the thing he was looking for. The books that had once been in the Room of Requirement were placed comfortably on the top shelf for all the world to see.

Draco unconsciously turned to the man beside him. They had ended up in Professor Elric's hands. This meant that whoever that blonde boy had been the other week, he and Professor Elric were connected. It would have helped if Draco had caught a proper look of the boy, however he had not. Blonde may be a recessive gene but that did not mean there were few at Hogwarts. No, it was only after witnessing the boy in the Room of Requirement, that it had come to Draco's attention just how many there were.

Either way, he had been lead to the Theory Professor. That was a step forward, so the blonde boy hardly mattered now. With this final thought he returned his attention to where it should be, no longer dwelling on the old questions. The new ones could wait.

You know that annoying thing where once you stop looking for something it suddenly falls right into your lap? Well guess who chose that exact moment to walk through the doorway?

"Brother, I know you're busy but Madame Pince has been complaining about how you're putting her out of business with all the books you're taking. Perhaps you could return a few once you're finished with them." Draco's eyes widened. Speak of the devil. Hang on, did he say brother?

Edward growled and rose to his feet, snatching the book away from Alphonse.

"There's got to be a couple thousand books at her disposal, she can wait. Besides, what use are they collecting dust in the restricted section anyway?" Edward complained. He replaced the books in Alphonse's hands with used ones and flicked through his new information source.

"Brother, you…" Alphonse went to reply but was rendered silent by the hesitant voice of a third person in the room.

"What are you researching Professor Elric?" The brothers turned their attention to Malfoy. Alphonse was, obviously wondering how he had managed to miss the boy. And Edward was merely surprised at the genuine interest Malfoy was showing.

"Just a little on protective charms for the school." Edward said nonchalantly. Alphonse threw him a questioning look. It was clear that Malfoy was playing for the wrong side. Giving away even that little information could endanger Hogwarts. Edward merely continued. Alphonse was going to have to trust him. "We've been asked to do so by Dumbledore. Apparently there was an attack last year which we can't afford to happen once more."

Alphonse saw by the way Malfoy's expression changed that he had taken in the information. He was obviously going to pass it on.

"You read a lot then Professor?" Malfoy asked, more confidently this time. Edward shrugged.

"Well it is my job." He reasoned. "Why? Is there anything you need help with?" Alphonse had to resist the urge to say anything at this point. He saw what his brother was doing. Equivalent exchange, Malfoy was not going to give them anything unless they relinquished information first.

"I was wondering about, transport. You know, other than floo powder and portkeys." Malfoy commented. "I'm planning a… trip." Alphonse smiled and fished two books from his arms and handed them to Malfoy. One of them he had found in the room of requirement several weeks earlier. The other was one Madam Pince had been threatening his brother's life for….she could wait.

"Try these two Draco. I'm sure you'll find them to be helpful." Alphonse provided. "Anyway I should be leaving. I didn't mean to intrude on your detention. I'll see you tomorrow Brother, good night."

Before Malfoy had the chance to thank him, Alphonse was gone. The student and the professor were left standing in silence.

"So," Edward began clapping his hands together. "Shall we continue?"

* * *

"Sexual frustration."

Ron and Harry both almost spat pumpkin juice onto the Common Room floor at these words. Both of them moved their gazes to Hermione.

"Huh?" They exclaimed simultaneously. Hermione shrugged innocently.

"That would probably explain why he's been so on edge recently." Ginny elaborated for her, making the excuse sound absolutely plausible. "You two just want to see destruction everywhere you look, especially when it comes to him." Harry raised his eyes incredulously.

"Hermione, Ginny, there's a heck of a lot more wrong with Malfoy. It's definitely not that he isn't getting laid." He defended. "Besides, I haven't seen it make Hermione any different." As Hermione set about maiming Harry, Ron returned them to the initial topic by whining.

"Never mind that. Can we please never mention Malfoy and sex in the same sentence ever again?" Hermione snorted.

"I couldn't agree more Ron." Harry concurred. "And it's not true anyway. I've been checking the map almost every night. He's rarely in bed before three AM." Ron and Hermione exchanged a glance.

"What the hell is he up to?" Ron asked cautiously.

"Did you check other people's beds?" Ginny grinned mischievously, causing Hermione to giggle.

"GINNY!" Both boys exclaimed. The giggles became full blown laughter.

* * *

Alphonse returned later that night to his brother. This time, he ensured that they were alone, before speaking.

"You used equivalent exchange on Malfoy. After all this time, you're still an alchemist at heart." Alphonse mused, smiling warmly towards his brother. Edward rolled his eyes but did not neglect to smile too.

"Harry was right. Malfoy has got to be working on a way to get Voldemort into the castle." Edward muttered, fingers going to his chin as they so often did when he thought.

"Well then, at least now we have control of what information he sees and what he doesn't." Alphonse replied. Edward nodded.

"Yes that will certainly make it easier to stop him. He doesn't seem to know about the stone though." Alphonse raised an eyebrow at his brother's comment.

"Really? Then what could Voldemort be after?" He questioned thoughtfully.

"He's after me." The Elric brother's jumped at the sudden presence in the room. It was Dumbledore and in the doorway on the other side, stood Snape casting silencing spells. Edward was the first to recover.

"After you Headmaster?" Edward prompted, curiously raising an eyebrow. Dumbledore nodded.

"Yes, if all goes to plan, by the end of the year, the Death Eaters will be given access to Hogwarts and Draco Malfoy will have killed me." Dumbledore said lightly as if he were discussing the weather.

"You know of his plan?" Alphonse gasped. "Then why are you still playing along with it?" He challenged his face changing to a frown. Dumbledore smiled at the boy.

"That, Mr. Elric, is because it must happen in order for Voldemort to be defeated." The headmaster replied. Both brothers opted to raise their eyebrows, a clear indication for him to explain. "Well, Mr. Elric as you might know, I had Sirius Black ask you and your brother to teach Harry and his friends alchemy. This is because it is one of the few ways to destroy a Horcrux. Yes, I know about the Horcruxes, they were brought to my attention last year by the exchange students, if you might call them that."

Edward and Alphonse had remained silent and merely nodded in understanding. They then blinked at him, urging him to continue.

"Well, unfortunately, one of them got the better of me." Dumbledore sighed halfheartedly and held up his hand. The Elric brothers observed the hand in what can only be called sick fascination. It was as if it were rotting away. "I am dying boys, and unfortunately, I need Harry to take over my quest. For this to happen, for light to obtain victory, Voldemort must succeed temporarily." Dumbledore finished confidently. The twinkle stronger than it had been before. Edward and Alphonse exchanged a glance.

"So what you're saying is that you and Snape have the next two years planned out completely." Edward asked doubtfully.

"We like to be thorough, Elric." Snape drawled, staring Edward down. The reply he received was a growl and a dark glare.

"Now, Severus no need to pick a fight." Dumbledore calmed. "Yes, we had everything planned." He admitted. "Everything but you, Mr. Elric. You and your brother are sharper than we anticipated." Edward smiled proudly.

"So, you've decided to include us then?" Alphonse asked. He was obviously still wary of the two. "Have you come to ask us not to interfere with Malfoy? You want us to simply let it happen? "

"Precisely." Dumbledore smiled. They all fell silent for a moment, allowing the weight of the demand to sink in. It seemed like an eternity before Edward chose to speak.

"No."

Snape bristled and the smile on Dumbledore's face dropped just a fraction.

"Elric, when the headmaster asks something of you, you go along with it." He sneered. "Or do you not care about the outcome of this war."

"Snape, how much I care about this war doesn't matter. What you're asking is for us to stand by and let you make a killer of a child. I'm sorry, but I cannot let that happen." Edward snapped confidently.

"Murder is not something a sixteen year old should have to go through." Alphonse added taking a stand beside his brother. Snape's expression darkened but it was Dumbledore who spoke.

"It sounds as if you are speaking from experience Mr. Elric." Dumbledore commented. The expressions on their faces darkened.

"As a matter of fact, we are. I will not let it happen. Malfoy is not working from free will and if there is a way to change his mind we will do it."

The group once again fell into an awkward silence, each side staring the other down. Then Dumbledore sighed.

"This is most troublesome indeed." He sighed. The brothers tensed, preparing for another argument however it never came. "It seems we will have to find a way around this. Putting the guilt on Mr. Malfoy hardly seems fair. Oh I know, Severus, you can do it." Three sets of eyes widened at this.

"Headmaster…" Snape began, but he was interrupted.

"Severus, you made the unbreakable vow did you not? If the Elrics intend to stand by what they said, which I do not doubt they do, then you will have to execute the vow." Dumbledore resumed merrily.

"Headmaster, you cannot simply decide such things like this." Snape said, looking more than slightly frazzled.

"It does, of course mean that the Elric brothers must continue to discourage Malfoy. Not of the entire plan, but only of the murder itself." He may have been speaking in third person, but at this point Dumbledore turned to the Elric brothers looking them straight in the eye accusingly. The brothers smiled.

"We can do that." They replied instantly. The smile once again graced the headmaster's lips and he turned his back to them.

"Wonderful, well then Severus how about you join me in my office for some tea and sherbet lemons? We can discuss things further there." Dumbledore sang as he swept out of the room.

"Yes, Headmaster." Snape sighed, following in step.

Once the two had left the Elric brothers each released a breath they did not know they had been holding. Alphonse smiled.

"At least we know who we've actually been working for this whole time." He offered.

"Oh yes and what a comfort that is. That man is off his rocker." Edward laughed in reply, to which Alphonse could merely smile.

"So true."

* * *

The Elrics successfully made it to their beds that night and rather than sleeping, used the time to ponder the shocking events of the night. It seemed as if another assignment had been added to their list: Befriend Draco Malfoy.

Edward sighed as he sat up in bed, flipping through the pages of yet another book.

"I need to stop being such a workaholic." He muttered to himself. He stopped reading when he felt his stomach grumble and groaned. He had not eaten for a couple of hours and his body was beginning to catch on. He supposed it was his own fault for skipping dinner in order to work but there was little he could do about it now. He had no food on him except…

Edward glanced towards the chair resting in the corner of his room. On it rested the cloak he had worn yesterday and if he was correct, the candy he had received with it. But could he eat it? After all, it had been a present. Really he should hang on to it. All it took was a loud reminder from his stomach for Edward to make up his mind. He leaped from his bed and tiptoed over to the robe. Sure enough, inside was the small chocolate Roy had given him the night before. Edward unwrapped it and popped it in his mouth.

Satisfied that this was all he could do to satiate his appetite, Edward returned to his bed. He rested the book on the bed side table and laid his head against the pillow. The same small smile spread across his lips as he curled onto his side and pulled the duvet up to his chin.

"Thank you Roy."

* * *

The next day had Harry, Ron and Hermione sat at the breakfast table in silence. Not much had been said on the topic discussed last night, as all three of them were focused on their own thoughts that morning. Ron was, of course, reflected on his triumph in the Quidditch field for the past few weeks. Hermione was still sulking at Harry for calling her sexually frustrated.

Harry, himself had begun by thinking of Malfoy but had since moved on to Ginny. Yesterday, had proven to be surprisingly fun thanks to her. He'd have to make sure to spend more time with her in future.

So they all remained lost in their own thoughts until the sound of hurried footsteps was heard. They were heading right for the Gryffindor table, more specifically towards Harry.

"Harry, have you seen Professor Slughorn?" Alphonse panted. Harry blinked in confusion. He had obviously run across what must have been half of Hogwarts, judging by the breath he'd had knocked out of him. Hermione was the one to provide the answer for him.

"Professor Slughorn isn't here. He's gone to some fancy reunion or something." She said, raising an eyebrow at him.

"Shit!" Alphonse cursed, causing all three of the Gryffindors to fall silent. It was one thing to hear Edward swear, but Alphonse was a whole other matter.

"Al, what the hell is wrong?" Harry voiced what all three of them have been thinking. Alphonse swallowed before turning to Harry.

"It's my brother….I think he's gone mad." The panic was evident in his voice. The trio exchanged glances.

"What's he done, mate?" Ron asked, putting his cutlery down. This time Alphonse did hesitate, before he forced out as if embarrassed.

"He says he's in love with Roy Mustang."

"WHAT?"

* * *

Sorry for the utter seriousness of this chapter. I think it's due to the lack of Roy. He's sort of my comic relief but don't let him know ;)

I hope you can tell that the next chapter most definitely won't be as serious as this one. You can also expect some RoyEd dear readers! Yes it's only taken me 15 chapters, which is kind of soon for me. Thank you for your patience. Anyway please review. Next chapter will be out next week!


	15. Love Potions

Chapter XV

Cherry Syndrome

Edward could not sleep. He could not drink. He could not eat and work was the last thing on his mind. All of this because, try as he might, he could not bring himself to function properly. With every breath his heart clenched with longing. With every glance he found something that brought about memories of that man and with every sigh he could not help but think of what he truly wanted. It had taken a while for him to identify the feeling. It was all so new and foreign to him but in the end he had realised it. Edward Elric was love sick. And for whom you may ask? Well, none other than the charming, perfect, amazing, gorgeous Roy Mustang.

"I wonder if he's thinking about me right now." Edward sighed wistfully. All four teenagers exchanged glances.

"He's completely lost it." Ron observed, waving a hand in front of Edward's face. "Are you sure this is Professor Elric?" He asked, turning to face Alphonse who was hopping from foot to foot from anxiety.

"That's not funny Ron. I'm really worried. What if he really has gone crazy?" Alphonse whined.

"I am crazy." Edward cut in, returning all looks to him. "Crazy in love." He sighed flopping back onto his bed with yet another love sick sigh.

"Oh that's disgusting." Ron commented, screwing up his nose along with Alphonse and Harry. Hermione sighed and hit him over the head.

"Isn't it obvious?" She scoffed, folding her eyes. The three boys shrugged.

"What is it Hermione?" Harry asked. Hermione rolled her eyes in response.

"Professor Elric has been given a love potion. That's the only possible explanation for his…bizarre behaviour."

"….love potion?" Ron prompted. He, like many students at Hogwarts, suffered from a condition where his brain ceased to function at any mention of the word "potions". This, however, warranted absolutely no pity from Hermione, as she shot him an incredulous look and explained slowly.

"Which means that Professor Elric has been given food -most likely from Professor Mustang- that was laced with love potion. I'm surprised you haven't heard about them. All the girls are doing it." She explained. "Well not me." Hermione continued sheepishly as she met eyes with Ron.

"So Mustang has poisoned Edward?" Harry asked, frowning at the unlikelihood of this happening. Edward jumped to his feet almost instantly at these words.

"LIES! What I'm feeling is real. I am in love with him. He is the most amazing man, no, person that I have ever met." Edward declared convincingly. "Oh how I would love to just grab his strong arms and kiss him all over. His lips, his chest, his manly …."

"OK!" Edward was silenced by a hand across his mouth, before he could finish the sentence. Alphonse had very appropriately chosen this moment to cut in and censor his speech. It did not stop the rest of them from cringing, knowing exactly what would have been coming next. Alphonse glanced around the group helplessly. "So, what do we do now? Professor Slughorn is not here and I'll be damned before I ask that miserable Snape for help. Merlin knows Brother would kill me." Alphonse said. He was slowly beginning to get just a little panicked (Because he had kept his cool whilst stumbling into the Great Hall, of course).

"He has to supervise at Hogsmede too, doesn't he?" Hermione added. "Who is his shift with?" She asked, probably already knowing the answer. Alphonse grimaced.

"It's with Mustang."

"Shit." Harry contributed.

"Exactly!"

Edward ripped his brother's hand from his lips with a giddy smile.

"I get to work with Roy today? Oh what luck!" He said almost bursting with excitement. "And we'll be at Hogsmede too. It'll be just like a date. I wonder what I should wear." Edward laughed as he skipped and danced his way to his cupboard. The teenagers went just a little green.

"Brother, you're scaring your students." Alphonse said flatly, following his brother, hopefully preventing him from turning up to his meeting with Roy in frilly dress robes. Harry, Ron and Hermione took to staring at Edward gormlessly.

"You know, say what you will about Mustang, I don't think he would actually poison Edward." Harry said, after the three shared a moment of silence. Hermione nodded.

"That's true and even if it happened, you'd think that Edward would pick up on it. He's good at potions." She agreed.

"It's not like those two need love potions, anyway. Just look at them," Ron muttered "I bet someone just gave them the potion 'cause they were sick of all the bickering." Hermione and Harry laughed mirthlessly. Ridiculous as it was, Ron was somewhat correct.

"Wait, them?" Harry said. "Are you saying that Mustang…?" Harry was interrupted by the Elric brothers dropping onto the bed once more. Edward was much more clothed this time and thankfully it was the same black robes as always. Thank Merlin for Alphonse.

"The only explanation I can think of is that it's a spell not a potion, that's why brother didn't pick up on it." Alphonse said. In his hands he held a book on what seemed to be charms concerning emotions. The three Gryffindors crowded around Alphonse as he elaborated on what stood in the book. "I remember stumbling across this spell a while ago. I can't remember what I was looking for back then, but this sounds about right. It looks like the spell works a little differently from the potion. It's a lot easier to do and therefore is quite a bit simpler. Unlike the potion that has you fall in love with a particular person, the chocolates when given will make the receiver fall in love with the giver." For what had to be the millionth time, all eyes were on Edward.

"Edward, has Mustang given you any chocolate recently?" Harry asked, somewhat dreading the answer. A smile touched Edward's lips immediately and he nodded with zeal.

"Oh yes! Just the other night actually. I still have the wrapper see?" From his robe, Edward withdrew a small wrapper that had once contained the charmed chocolate.

"Where did he get that from?" Hermione wondered. The smile quickly dropped and was replaced by what can only be described as a death glare.

"It was from some little _girls_, who asked me to give them to him. Ha! Bet they didn't expect him to just give them away." Edward replied stonily. Three sets of eyes widened and Ron snickered.

"Do you think the girls realised how the spell worked?" Harry asked hesitantly.

"Not if they were expecting Mustang to fall in love with them they didn't." Alphonse commented.

"They probably wanted to give it to him directly but chickened out and completely forgot about the function" Hermione added with a hint of sympathy. All three of them put their hands to their chins in deep thought. A collective "hmm" resounded from the three that was only to be broken by Ron's laughter.

"Hey you guys, aren't you forgetting the most important thing?" He asked cheerily through his laughter. They looked at him blankly.

"What?"

Ron snorted.

"Mustang gave Elric chocolate right? Now he's even loonier than Lovegood," Ron said, ignoring the frown Harry sent his way. "Well, Elric gave Mustang chocolate too. Do we really want to handle two nut jobs?"

…..

"FUCK!" Harry, Hermione and Alphonse were out of the room faster than bats out of hell; that is, really fast. In their wake they left nothing but a bewildered Edward Elric and a chortling Ronald Weasley. In fact, Ron continued to laugh for an impressive sixty seconds, before he felt arms wrap around his torso and a sigh breeze against his ear. Chills ran down Ron's spine, as Edward pulled himself closer.

"You know if you weren't so ginger and had a much more handsome face you would look just like Roy."

….

"Thanks Professor."

* * *

Roy was sat peacefully in his office, throwing wadded up balls of unfinished paperwork onto the fireplace. He had always hated that stuff. During his time at the Ministry, Roy had spent more time avoiding work than actually doing anyway. It was wondrous that he had actually made it as far as he had. True, it may have helped that he had always had a very pesky secretary who had urged him on however even she had refused to baby him now that he had been promoted. Roy shrugged and threw another paper ball square into the fire.

He had about an hour before he was due in Hogsmede with Edward and naturally, was finding very useful ways of spending his time. He'd had breakfast, chatted with some students and returned to his office to poke absently at the chocolates that Edward had given him the other night. Yes, he was being very productive indeed. He should have given more of them to Edward. He had never been all that fond of sweets. He felt they were for children, not for adult men such as himself. Roy snorted. That must have been why he gave one to Edward. The man could easily pass for sixteen years old. Come to think of it, how old was Edward anyway. Roy couldn't recall ever asking. Roy picked up a chocolate and eyed it blankly

"One can't hurt." He mumbled to himself, slowly pulling the edges of the wrapper apart.

What happened next was like something out of Rita Skeeters action articles. The door burst open revealing three frazzled students, all staring wide eyed at the man before them.

"Mustang, NO!" They all yelled. With impressive teamwork, they leapt into the office and across the desk. Alphonse tore the chocolate from Roy's fingers. Harry snatched the packet away from the desk and Hermione with the quick yell of a spell had the box burst into flames within seconds. After a moments pause, the three dropped to the floor, huffing with exhaustion. It was criminal how far Roy's office was from the teacher's dorms. Roy, not understanding a thing, decided to play along anyway. He sat himself on the floor opposite them and applauded.

"That was quite impressive you three. Honestly, it deserves some sort of victory dance," he praised "but why are you storming into my office and setting things on fire?" He finished, looking mournfully towards the ashes that were the chocolate box. Alphonse was the first to regain his composure from the marathon.

"They were charmed, Professor." He said, nodding towards the box. "If you'd eaten those you would have fallen under the effects of a love charm." Roy's eyebrow's raised a fraction.

"Oh really?" He asked, just a little doubtful. The three of them nodded. "Well how would you know that?" The heavy breathing stopped and Hermione, Harry and Alphonse exchanged awkward glances.

"Well…." Harry began hesitantly. Roy's eyebrows reached past his fringe and a gleeful grin blessed his lips.

"It's one of the ones I gave to Edward isn't it? Oh Merlin did he eat it? Who's he fallen in love with?" Roy laughed.

"You are enjoying that far too much Professor." Alphonse commented flatly. He did not find any of it in the least bit funny. Roy managed to rise above the laughter and compose himself.

"I'm sorry Alphonse, you're right it's not funny." He said tightly, trying to mask the smirk he felt coming on. "Thank you for saving my skin I suppose but what are you going to do about Edward?"

"We haven't got that far. We were hoping he'd kind of….snap out of it you know?" Harry admitted. Roy nodded in understanding.

"Well as long as he can still work then its fine. I'll take him to Hogsmede whilst Alphonse tries to figure out how to break the spell." He suggested. Speaking of which, it was getting high time to leave. Roy got to his feet and began to collect his robe, wand and other essentials. The students watch on dumbly.

"Uh, Professor, I don't think that's a very good idea." Hermione attempted. Roy waved an arm at her dismissively.

"Nonsense, it'll be fine. Just leave Edward to me. I think I can handle him." He reassured her, walking out the door without another glance back. Alphonse sighed.

"Why does that man never listen? He's just like the Colonel." He muttered under his breath. He stood up and held his hands out for Hermione and Harry to do the same.

"What was that?" Harry asked, accepting the hand.

"Oh nothing. Come on, we should get back to the other two." Alphonse brushed off. The three of them turned to the exit and within a couple of minutes were back in Edward's room. The sight they returned to was quite the odd one. The room on a whole was in the same state as they had left it. There were still books and papers scattered everywhere. The rumpled sheets were still halfway to the floor, clinging onto the bed for dear life. The bedside table was even exactly how they had left it. The only difference was that on the bed lay two dozing figures. Ron and Edward were curled in each other's arms. Edward had his face buried in Ron's chest and was slowly nodding off. He was whispering something in regards to Roy and smiling softly. Harry grinned.

"Having fun Ron?" He teased. He once again threw himself onto the bed, ignoring the stir it evoked from Edward. Ron scoffed.

"Remind me to strike, love potions off my list of 'ways to find a date'. He's been so annoying." Ron complained, peeling himself away from Edward. The others chuckled, understanding full well where he was coming from. "So how'd it go? Is Roy a love sick puppy too now?" Ron asked. The group shook their heads.

"No we got there just in time. Unfortunately, he still wants Edward to meet him at Hogsmede though." Alphonse said bitterly.

"You did tell him that Professor Elric was ready to build a shrine for him right?" Ron prompted incredulously.

"Well we tried but he wouldn't listen." Hermione said dejectedly.

"So, what do we do now?" Harry asked. The trio turned to look at Alphonse for a solution. The boy was eyeing his brother skeptically.

"I suppose we can go with what Mustang said, well, most of it. I'll stay here and try to figure out what to do with him. You three can go with Edward." Alphonse said. The trio nodded. "And promise me, _please_, that you won't let him do anything to scarring. We don't want to have to deal with that when he gets back to normal." He concluded. No one could say no to Alphonse when he looked at them so pleadingly. So, naturally, Harry, Ron and Hermione just sighed and looked nervously towards their professor.

"We'll try our best." They agreed.

* * *

So this was how the Gryffindor trio found themselves walking in step with Edward, watching carefully for any small sighting of raven hair and coal eyes. So far, they were doing pretty well. They had made it into the village without too much trouble and had even managed to drag Edward into the sweet shop. That in itself had not been too much of a feat but it did get difficult when the blonde decided he wanted to buy out the store for his one true love.

After much negotiation, Edward had settled with a fancy box of mints with a lovely bow. Harry, Ron and Hermione had bought enough to last them the month. This was a fatal mistake on Ron and Harry's part because this meant that their arms were completely full. If grabbing were needed then they most certainly would not be doing it. And seeing as inconvenience was something that seemed to plague the trio, Roy made himself known at this particular moment. He came walking down the hill towards them with a large friendly smile and a wave. Edward tore away from the group as soon as he caught sight of him. Roy grinned.

"Hey Ed, I heard someone slipped you a love potion. So tell me, who's the lucky lad..?" Roy was silenced as Edward reached him. The blonde threw his arms around Roy, letting them rest on his neck and with a huge smile, brought their lips together in a soft kiss. Roy visible stiffened when they met but made no move to resist. Instead, he moved his arms around the blonde's waist to stabilize him and provide him with a weight to lean on. Edward's eyes fluttered shut as his body melted into Roy's as if it belonged there, as if it always had. And when they drew apart, the longing sigh that had been on his lips all day was replaced with a content one, as he smiled lovingly into those dark eyes.

Roy was speechless, to say the least. He kept his arms linked around Edward but that may have been purely out of shock. After what seemed an eternity, Edward dropped back to the base of his heels and began chatting away happily on how he had missed him. All Roy could do was move his gob smacked gaze to the trio who came stumbling up to them, swearing at how fast Edward could run. Roy did not need to say anything (which was probably a good thing, seeing as in his state he probably would not have been able to). No, everything he wanted to convey was in his eyes. When he, Harry, Ron and Hermione made contact the message was clear as day.

…me?

Hermione huffed, out of breath a second time that day. Just a little pity graced her as she caught the bewildered look on her teacher's face.

"You know we tried to tell you Professor."

* * *

The library was still bursting with books, despite all of Madam Pince's complaints to Alphonse. He had even been confronted with the problem of too many books upon entering the charms section of the chamber. After a five minute gathering and a lot of elimination, Alphonse had chosen a seat with a grand total of seven books that required his attention.

"No wonder all the students are using them. These books are everywhere." Alphonse muttered to himself, flipping to the index. It was a miracle that having spent so much time researching the wizarding community, the Elric brothers had never considered it important to look at Love potions or spells.

"C…C…Ch…" Alphonse once again mumbled, running his finger down the list however, he stopped when he noticed someone take the seat opposite him. Looking up, he found Draco Malfoy sat opposite him. In a library full of empty chairs he had chosen that particular seat without a second thought. The boys made brief eye contact and nodded before Malfoy averted his eyes and broke it. Neither of them said anything nor did they acknowledge one another after that. They just sat in comfortable silence, reading the books set before them. And in the silence, a small, almost imperceptible smile graced their lips.

* * *

Finito! Yep that's it. Sorry for the extra wait. I'm not sure what happened, I just know that I didn't get it finished on time. I've been trying to update every Sunday, have you noticed? Anyway, I hope that was enough for you to last you the rest of the week. There'll be a slice more on Sunday. RAWR! (I don't know why I did that)

Please review. I really enjoy reading them


	16. Deletrius

Chapter XVI

Cherry Syndrome

"Patience."

Draco looked up from his work to give the boy opposite him a quizzical look.

"I beg your pardon?" He asked, raising an eyebrow at Alphonse. It had been three hours since he had sat himself down and neither of them had uttered a word until now.

"That's all this book is giving me." Alphonse complained flipping the page in frustration. "The spell wears off with time is what it says. I don't have time. Chaos could be occurring as we speak." He continued to whine. The statement though it may have seemed so was probably not too much of an exaggeration. Alphonse had spent too much time in the library and there was only so much he could expect from his brother's chaperones. It was his brother after all.

Naturally, the complaints did not help Draco comprehend the situation at all but it probably made Alphonse feel better. He glanced down at the book, finally taking an interest in what the other boy was actually doing in the library on a Hogsmede afternoon. One glance gave it all away. The title of the page did not need to explain itself.

'Love Charms'…some poor sod had been slipped one of those horrendous chocolates. Draco shook his head and looked back at Alphonse who was cursing the book under his breath. Judging by the reaction he was witnessing, chances were that the victim was one of Alphonse's close friends, very possibly someone from the holy trio that was Potty and his friends. A small smile graced Draco's lips at the thought of Potter suffering the embarrassment of being slipped a love potion. He even considered going to Hogsmede just to watch the humiliation ensue. Unfortunately, he was meant to be back in the Room of Requirement within half an hour so he could not go. For now, Draco would just have to be contented with his imagination.

Alphonse blinked when a smile fell across Draco's face. He had not seen anything close to friendliness with this boy since the beginning of the year. It came as a surprise. Granted, there was a sadistic touch to the smile. It obviously had nothing to do with friendliness and more to do with suffering but Alphonse took it anyway. He returned the smile and said:

"Any ideas Malfoy?"

The moment the words broke the silence, Malfoy scowled. Alphonse watched as it must have struck Malfoy that he was being civil with a Gryffindor and not a pure blood at that. The shutters came down as he rose to his feet.

"Kindly stop annoying me with your pointless drivel Elric. I have better things to do than listen to you." Malfoy collected the books into his arms and turned his back. Alphonse sighed in disappointment however Malfoy was cruel enough to thwart the feeling with his next words.

"Hogwarts has really gone to the dogs if you can't even think to use a 'Deletrius' charm. Ignoramus, the lot of you Gryffindors. You're an embarrassment to all of us." He spat and stalked off. Alphonse was once again left to blink slowly as he processed the information. However it struck him with a glimmer of hope and with a grin, Alphonse jumped to his feet. Without even bothering to put away his books, he dashed out of the library, ignoring the shouts of a livid Madame Pince. The only echoes of the Elric's presence there was the pat on the shoulder Malfoy received as Alphonse raced past him.

Draco halted in his steps as he watched the boy leave at quite impressive speed. He himself had not even made it out of the library. He also was not going to. Draco's breath caught in his throat when someone seized his collar from behind, constricting his breath. He turned to see the face of the utterly terrifying Madame Pince. Honestly, the woman could rival Madame Pomfrey when it came to their iron grip and balls of steel.

"Young man, you are not leaving until you tidy up after your friend." She ordered, pulling him back towards the mountain of books. Draco's eyebrows shot up in surprise. The words caused him to regain his footing and brush off the librarians arm.

"I don't associate with Gryffindors." He said curtly. "Why on earth should I clean up after one?" Madame Pince stopped to look at the rebellious boy. A slow, dangerous smile spread across Madame Pince's face as she spelled out for him.

"Well Mr. Malfoy, it's this or detention. Your choice." She offered sweetly. Draco swore under his breath as he plodded back to the table he had been trying to abandon. It was all too easy for Malfoy to come to the temporary conclusion that followed: He hated Alphonse Elric.

* * *

Roy had managed to survive. His innocence (the little he had) had been protected and he was currently enjoying a butterbeer at the Three Broomsticks. Confident in his abilities, Roy had shooed the student who had been charged with Edward away. He did not want to ruin their afternoon, nor did he wish for them to witness anything too humiliating for Edward. They had been more than glad to scurry off the moment the words had left Roy's lips. This had left himself and Edward alone, to embark on a trip to the pub. Roy's abilities had not disappointed him there either. Granted Edward Elric was still hanging off his arm but he had grown used to it. It was even started to become quite comfortable, he would never admit that of course. Roy turned to regard the man beside him and Edward met his gaze with a smile. He moved in closer and the smell of parchment and steel reached Roy through the stuffy, pub air.

"I suppose it's nice to have you smiling at me for a change." Roy mused, feeling a twitch at his lips. Edward shook his head.

"Roy, I smile at you all the time. You just aren't looking." He deadpanned, looking genuinely surprised at Roy's accusation. Roy shook his head.

"No, I haven't seen it once." He denied. "Do you wait until I've turned my back or something?" The silence worked as well as words for a confirmation. "You do don't you? Oh that's horrible Edward!" He laughed, unsure of whether to feel hurt or flattered by his colleague's shyness. Edward blinked innocently before allowing a mischievous smile to make it way across his features.

"Alright, I'll tell you what Roy. I'll start smiling in front of you all the time…but I'll expect a reward of course." Edward prompted, once more increasing their proximity. Now, Roy who was not nearly as clueless as he made out to be, inched backwards in response to the predatory turn the blonde had taken.

"Er…what kind of reward are we talking here?" He asked nervously, scooting further back with every word. Edward shrugged artistically, momentarily ceasing his advance.

"Well, we'll have to think about that won't we?" He suggested. Roy seemed to deflate with relief, once more relaxing into his place on the bench. That was until he felt a nimble hand run its way up the inside of his thigh. Roy shuddered and turned in consternation towards Edward. The blonde had not given up.

"I'll take a kiss for now Mustang." Edward smirked, his voice dropping to a low, sultry tone that brought Roy's shudder back with a vengeance.

"Erm…Edward I hate to break it to you but um…you know I'm straight right?" Roy rushed out, grabbing hold of the hand that was far too close to his private parts for comfort "like, shags women straight. I love women!" He continued, having no effect on the blonde.

"Really?" Edward drawled, their mouths only centimetres apart now. Their desperate breath mingling as the confident smirk refused to leave Edwards lips. "Then tell me Roy, why are you…"

"DELETRIUS!"

It was as if a bubble had burst between the two. The tension snapped leaving nothing but awkwardness behind. Alphonse stood in front of them, heaving enervated breaths. There had been far too much running that day, unfortunately it was not about to stop.

"…Mustang?"

"…Yeah?"

"Kindly inform me as to why you are holding my hand to your groin."

Edward was back to normal. Roy cursed in frustration, ripping his hand away from Edwards, the blonde immediately mimicking his actions.

"You put it there." He explained halfheartedly. Edward merely looked at him in outrage.

"I think you've had too much Firewhiskey." He said slowly, edging away from his colleague. "And don't sit so close to me." He accused. At that point something in Roy must have snapped. He turned to Edward with a look that was nothing short of irritated.

"I'm too close to you huh? Let's talk about that. What about you? You've practically been hexed to my arm all day." He snapped. Edward just frowned at the reaction.

"Hexed to you? No I haven't…"

"It's true Brother." They both looked at Alphonse as he dropped into the only empty seat opposite them. Still slightly out of breath from having run all the way from Hogwarts. "You ate charmed chocolates and have spent all day in love with Professor Mustang….well I say in love, more like besotted." Alphonse and Roy watched with a bemused look as a light blush slowly began to make its way up Edward's neck and onto the apples of his cheeks. Roy swallowed the dry lump in his throat as he watched Edward come to realisation of what happened. "I just stopped you from having your way with him, Brother." Roy started.

"Now hang on a minute. You make it sound like I'm some damsel in need of protecting." He protested with a frown. Alphonse huffed in response to his pointless comment.

"Was that not how it was? You did not seem to have things under control Professor." Alphonse countered. Edward scoffed.

"Besides, assuming we were in that kind of relationship, which would NEVER happen, I would obviously be the top." Edward chimed in, momentarily forgetting his embarrassment. Roy scoffed and took a swig of his drink, before slamming it down.

"Fat chance, look at the size of you. I would probably crush you!" He exclaimed, finally having control of his dry throat again. Alphonse snorted at his words, already anticipating the following reaction.

"DON'T CALL ME SHORT MUSTANG! Besides if I remember correctly, I was the one who made the move, and took control and kis…." He yelled but it slowly died down as Edward realised what he was saying. "….Oh God I kissed you…." He breathed more to himself than anyone else. Alphonse' jaw dropped at the news. He watched incredulously as Edward turned a red that would make a Weasley proud. Roy nodded meekly.

The confirmation did not make the situation better. If anything it worsened. Awkwardness dropped upon the group like a ton of bricks. Edward became increasingly mortified as he raised his fingers to his lips in horror. The blush flared up in him with a vengeance, blood thundering through his veins like a hoard of hippogriffs.

"…Yeah." Without another word Edward jumped to his feet, babbling an excuse about his desk being on fire and darted out of the pub. Roy sighed.

"Anyone else and it would've been funny." He complained, taking another gulp of butterbeer. Alphonse hummed in agreement and tapped his chin as he watched his brother leave. Then with a light countenance he allowed his fingertips to snake around the pint that had originally been his brother's.

"Well, this butterbeer up for grabs?" Roy's refined stance slacked slightly at Alphonse's lighthearted tone but he shrugged and pushed the drink towards the boy.

"It's all yours." He muttered, exhaling yet another sigh. Then a thought struck him and he turned to the boy who was happily sipping away at the scavenged drink. "And I would too be the top, you know." He stated firmly, crossing his arms and creasing his eyebrows. For now the snort of surprise that dragged Alphonse into a coughing fit was satisfying enough for Roy.

"Yeah, keep telling yourself that Professor." Alphonse laughed, smiling at the man in something acute to pity. That did not sit too well with Roy who got to his feet with a screech of the chair.

"Yeah really." He replied. Suddenly the care free air that followed Roy but seemed to have taken the afternoon off returned. "Just you wait Alphonse." He chuckled, turning at the heel and walking off. Alphonse was left alone, only to clear his throat and decide that whatever it was Roy meant with those words, he most certainly did not want to know.

* * *

Despite the….bizarre happenings of the day, the show must go on, as they say and Harry, Ron and Hermione had been promised an Alchemy lesson. This was how they found themselves sat nervously on the edges of their seats in the Gryffindor room at two on a Sunday morning. Hermione was wringing her fingers as she watched the very last seventh year slink off to bed with a muttered warning not to stay up too late. Harry and Ron were both watching the portrait hole intently, waiting for their teachers to arrive. And so they did. Roughly five minutes after the coast was clear, the Elric brothers strode casually through the portrait hole. The muttered complaints of the Fat Lady and the crackling of the fireplace were the only noises to break the silence that settled. That was until Alphonse cleared his throat and smiled reassuringly.

"Shall we get this underway then?" He suggested, ushering his brother further into the room. Edward stepped further into the room, removing his hands from his pockets in the process. The brothers shifted around uncomfortably at first, obviously not looking forward to what they were going to have to reveal about themselves in the few hours to come. But Edward seemed to come to grips with things first. He skimmed his fingers lightly along the collar of his shirt and from within it, retrieved a chain. He pulled it deftly over his head and held it confidently in front of the students.

"So I'm assuming you know what this is then." He received a silent nod in reply from each of them. Edward mimicked the action then shrugged "well I suppose you've seen a similar one before. This one is slightly different. The difference being it's from our world, the world of Alchemy, not yours." Harry, Ron and Hermione inched closer, searching for a difference between the stone and their memories of the one five years ago.

"You probably won't be able to tell the difference," Alphonse admitted. "Well, I suppose this one is slightly pinker but really the main difference between the two is where they come from and what they can do." He elaborated though he received little response. Alphonse sighed and took the Philosophers stone from Edward's grasp. "This one is made from living humans."

"Thousands of them," Edward added. He looked at the stone with a countenance so laden with emotion that for just one moment, Harry forgot to breath. "The lives of a whole city were taken to make this stone."

"We taught you about equivalent exchange. Well, a Philosophers stone such as this, that can do anything, can only be made at the sacrifice of lives. Harry, we told you before about Nicolas Flamel." Alphonse said.

"Yes, you said he sacrificed his wife to make a stone." Harry replied, providing the needed information for Ron and Hermione.

"Well, he got away with only using one person because he supplemented the process with magic. By doing this he lessened the abilities of the stone but equivalent exchange still applied." Alphonse explained ruefully.

"Fuck!"

Harry, Ron and Hermione started as Edward threw a candle stand to the floor in a fit of anger. It landed with a tremendous crash and Edward growled, clenching his fists.

"Nothing is worth a human life. " He snapped, more to himself than his company. Harry frowned. He had heard this before of course, they had discussed all of this during the summer when he had first met the Elrics. However this was different. Everything, all of Edward's previous bravado was gone. This time round, the blonde was raw. He was being much more honest. And Harry had no idea how to react. "We of all people would know that wouldn't we Al?"

…

"Yeah," Harry and his friends all turned to look at Alphonse. He was smiling but the awkward shuffling of his feet quickly gave away what he was feeling to the trio. Guilt. Hermione spoke first.

"What have you used the stone before? How can you expect us to…."

"No! We've never used the stone before." Edward interrupted, shaking his head at the mere thought. "We swore that no matter what position we were put into we would never resort to that." He continued.

"Not that we weren't tempted many a time." Eye contact had not been made once so far. The topic was heavy in itself without them having to further burden themselves. However, Alphonse changed this when he caught his brother's eye. Whilst doing this he murmured softly.

"Brother…" Edward nodded without much argument and shrugged off his cloak. A surprised squeak escaped Hermione, when Edward's shirt was the next to go. He was left stood in the middle of the common room with nothing but his boots and trousers on. Though Harry's eyes were first drawn to the rippling muscles revealed by Edward's striptease they did not linger long when he came across the gleaming metal, right arm. Edward held it forward proudly.

"This is automail. It's, as you can see, a metal prosthetic. It was constructed in our world. " Alphonse and Harry grinned at the proud edge that had laced its way into Edward's tone.

"What happened to your real arm Professor?" Hermione asked because Ron was too distracted by being impressed. There was a pause.

"Ah…well that is the second part of this lesson." Edward replied unenthusiastically. "We're going to teach you about human transmutation."

* * *

Harry Potter had read the book written by Alphonse Heidrich. He had taken notes and revised countless times on the things the Elrics had taught him. He had even mastered the art of a simple transmutation circle. But nothing could have prepared him for what he and his friends learnt that night. The 'ugly' side of alchemy as Alphonse had called it was not just ugly. It was foul.

"I hope, um, you understand why not to use it then…." Edward finished lamely, returning the stone to its place around his neck. "Alphonse only managed to get his body back and me my leg, at the price of losing everything. We've been cut off from our family, our friends, our homes and even our rights to live and die as we please." He said. It was bizarre how calm the boys had managed to stay throughout their story of the adventures they had been through. Harry remained silent as the pieces began to fall into place. All the small hints Alphonse and Edward had accidentally dropped when they'd been talking amongst themselves, their close and incredibly trusting relationship. And there was also Edward's reaction to Harry wanting to see Sirius. He had been ready to help. It had seemed odd at first but everything was so clear now. To Edward, family was the most important thing of all, and for good reason.

"So wait, Professor Mustang is a Colonel in your world." Ron asked, raising an eyebrow doubtfully. The brother's nodded.

"Edward…were you and he…" Harry began but was cut off by Alphonse' sharp shake of the head. He looked at the younger brother who raised a finger to his pursed lips.

"Were we what?" Edward urged, looking at him with nothing but curiosity.

"Were you and he good colleagues." Hermione covered for him. Edward snorted in reply as did his brother.

"They fought like cats and dogs, quite literally at times." Alphonse supplied, chuckling fondly.

"That was only because Colonel useless wouldn't drop the short jokes. I am not short." Edward snapped to which everyone exchanged amused glances. There was an exhale as Edward lost steam and a fond smile spread across his face and his eyes became overcast. "But I suppose, that if you look past all the mean jokes and times he forced me to do his paperwork, he was a pretty good boss. I would not have wanted another one." Edward concluded looking back up only to meet faces full of wide grins. "What?"

"Professor Elric you're so kind. No wonder you like our Professor Mustang so much as well." Hermione cooed a teasing edge to her voice.

"They must be just alike." Ron added in with a little smirk of his own. This time it was Edward's turn to snap his head in the negative.

"No! Don't compare them. The Colonel and our Roy are different, completely different. This Roy is…" The smirks did not disappear from their faces. As if he noticed what he had said, Edward took a couple of steps backwards and grabbed his shirt, rapidly pulling them over his head. "Oh would you look at the time? I have to go. Lots of work to do you know?" He quipped slowly retreating then making a dash as soon as his heels hit the portrait hole. Alphonse was left alone with the Gryffindors. He smiled and turned back to the group.

"Well, I guess we should call it a night then." He smiled. "I hope you learnt a lot and that our point reached you." Harry, Ron and Hermione nodded. Alphonse returned the nod and bid them good night. He turned towards the staircase leading to the boy's dormitory and within mere seconds was gone. The trio barely breathed as they waited for the boy's footsteps to die.

"So how old are they really then?" Ron mused, once more dropping into the sofa.

"Edward is 88 and Alphonse is 87 but hush Ron that doesn't matter." Harry rushed, sitting next to him and dragging Hermione down with him. Ron raised an eyebrow.

"Oh it doesn't." He asked skeptically.

"No because listen to this: there's Alchemy in the ministry!" Harry exclaimed excitedly. Hermione and Ron stared at him blankly.

"Come again?" They asked, leaning forwards. Harry sighed.

"Look, remember the trip we had on our first week. We went to see the Veil in the Department of Mysteries." He began. "Well, Edward and Alphonse mentioned the thing about the Gate right? Well what if the Veil is part of that gate?" He exclaimed. Hermione wrinkled her nose in doubt.

"Harry, I don't think that's…"

"No one knows what happens to a person once they go through the veil and why would the Elrics take us there if it had no merit to us? I heard Sirius' voice there too didn't I?" Once more, his friends could only nod. "Well, what if Sirius did not just disappear. What if he went through the veil? What if he's on the other side of this Gate? That would explain why he's gone." Hermione's eyes widened in understanding.

"He could be in their world." She breathed.

"Or in countless other ones." Ron complained but Harry just shrugged.

"It's a start, that's enough." A huge grin spread its way across his face. "I might be able to find my Godfather."

* * *

A week later, Edward was wondering down the hallways alone. Breakfast was on and just about everyone in the school was there, including his brother. However, that also meant that Roy Mustang was there and as of the weekend before, Edward had sworn that where Roy Mustang went he did not….ever. Simpler put, he was avoiding him. His plan may have meant countless impromptu visits to the kitchens, but it was better than any embarrassment gracing the Great Hall may cause him. Edward hummed to himself and traced his hand along the patterns of one of the countless pillars that stretched along the corridor. He had taken the break to wander aimlessly through the castle and for the first time in the six weeks that Edward had worked at Hogwarts, he took the time to admire its beauty.

His musings were not destined to last long. Just as Edward's hand leveled with his eyes, another joined it. This hand was larger and its pale fingers easily stronger. Edward halted his movements when he felt warm breath against his neck and a presence behind him. He shuddered as the fingers closed around his and a voice he instantly recognized, tousled the strands of hair by his ear.

"Edward are you avoiding me?" Roy asked calmly and deeply, his voice not giving anything away. But it was enough to send Edward into a paroxysm of panic. He swiped his arm away and spun around to see the confused look in the other man's face.

"Ah..no… i…um" He stammered for a moment but then his shoulders slumped and he obviously gave up. "I have to go." He muttered darkly. Before Roy could say another word, Edward slipped out from underneath him and fled.

He ran away from Roy, from his hands; from that deep voice but unfortunately, not the raging embarrassment and confusion that refused to give way.

* * *

Wow Edward has been doing a lot of running in this chapter, I think its his way of becoming self away xP

Is 1000 extra words enough for you to accept my apology? This was meant to be out weeks ago but I had to put it on hold for my exams. Then the moment school got out I was off to England. So, I AM SO SORRY! I also regret even more to say that I'm leaving the country and Sebastian (my lovely laptop) for the next three weeks so this is all I can give you for now.

I promise to upload the moment I get back though…really!


	17. Locket Troubles

Chapter XVII

Cherry Syndrome

The weeks seemed to fly by after the first Hogsmede visit. Quidditch, classes and even the extra lessons with Dumbledore and the Elric brothers seemed to pass without so much as a hitch for Harry. He would even go as far as to say that things at Hogwarts had been quiet for the first time ever. He spent the time that he was not working by lazing around with his friends or going for walks in the grounds. Before they knew it, a month had passed. November was halfway over and the next trip to Hogsmede was approaching fast. The delight that came over the castle when the snow came was almost palpable. Students began to emerge from the castle despite the cold weather to admire and play in the blanket that had coated everything in white. Everywhere one looked, it become obvious that Christmas was drawing near.

Harry, Ron, Alphonse and Hermione were no exception to the sudden urge to be outside. On the Friday before the Hogsmede trip they found themselves wandering the corridor in an attempt to warm up after a particularly vicious snow ball fight they had been coerced into by their house mates. They had ended up soaked and on the verge of frostbite but at least they had experienced a staggering victory before they headed inside. The goose bumps and shivers remained even after they had charmed themselves dry but did nothing to rid them of the smiles they all showed.

"I just hope none of us catch a cold," Alphonse laughed, hugging himself.

"I don't think I would mind that. At least, it would give me an excuse to get out of tonight," Harry grimaced, mimicking Alphonse's attempts by edging a little closer to the boy. From his other side, Ron blinked at his friends words.

"Tonight? What's happening tonight?" He asked.

"The Slug Club, Ron," Hermione reminded him, "Alphonse, Harry and I, we've all been invited."

"Oh," The cheerful smile dropped from Ron's face in an instance but just as quickly he tried to mask it. "Too bad Slughorn can't recognize my inner genius." He offered and though Hermione's chuckle was a bit of a mean reply, it went unnoticed by the group because a much harsher scoff was heard from a passing pair. Ron and Harry growled as Draco Malfoy and Blaise Zabini swept past them with condescending glares and their heads held high. While Harry was glad to let it go with a frown and some dark thoughts, Ron was not.

"Oi Malfoy, I don't know what you're laughing at. It's not like you've been invited either." He snapped. Malfoy stopped in his tracks to turn around to glare at Ron. Zabini did not bother to halt until he realised that his companion was no longer with him a few steps later.

"There are no Slytherins in the Slug Club, Weasley. We're much better than that. And anyway I'd quite frankly rather watch paint peel off a wall than spend a night in the barbaric company of mudbloods and blood traitors." He sneered in reply. Within an instant, Ron had bridge the gap between them and seized Malfoy by the collar. Ron growled in an animalistic way, ordering the man to take it back but it had no effect. Malfoy just let himself be man handled.

"Let. Me. Go." A look so completely raked with pure hatred and disgust passed through his eyes, causing Ron to hesitate if only for a second. He had never seen Malfoy struck with so much emotion and it was only then that it hit him just how revolted the man was by him. It was enough to make him even more livid and draw his wand. Zabini, Harry, Hermione and Alphonse were at his side in a heartbeat. "I'm warning you Weasley." He muttered darkly.

"Leave it Malfoy, or we'll be using our wands." Harry warned, taking hold of Ron's hands and slowly easing them off the Slytherin.

"Oh I really wouldn't want to do that." Alphonse sighed in distress, his eyes trailing down to Malfoy's torso. The man was wearing a locket, a quite pretty one actually. It was blue, and at the centre was an incredibly stunning yet unusual stone. Though he was not one for jewels Alphonse did know enough to appreciate it. Noticing where Alphonse's attentions were, Malfoy scoffed once more and tucked the locket beneath his shirt. Alphonse's eyes were returned once more to his face but there was a new spark of interest in them.

"Of course you wouldn't Elric. You wouldn't have the first idea what to do with it."

"You fucking git!" Ron and Harry swore, brandishing their wands to jinx the snooty blonde. They never got to though, as Alphonse took the chance to step smoothly between them and smile disarmingly at Malfoy.

"Ok I know I may not have made a good first impression but actually I'm quite good with the wand you know?" He said.

"I'll believe it when I see it Elric." He replied.

"I'm getting the feeling that you don't believe me Malfoy." He countered.

"Well I have no reason to." He said dismissively while straightening his tie. "But who knows, you might not be as much of an idiot as you come across. Then again if that were the case you would have been sorted into Slytherin." With that, he turned on his heel to walk away, ushering Zabini along with him. Harry, Ron and Hermione were glaring daggers into the boys' backs and muttering obscenities under their breaths. However Alphonse, try as he might, could not wipe the grin off his face.

"I'm quite comfortable where I am thank you, but just you wait, next time I'm going to blow your mind." He shouted at their retreating forms and was delighted to see the snort that followed. To the disbelief of their spectators, Malfoy actually turned around and smirked at Alphonse.

"Prove it." He said. Alphonse's grin widened. Without another word, Malfoy rounded the corner and was gone. The Gryffindor trio was left stooped in a silence disturbed only by Alphonse's mirth.

"What the hell was that?" Harry asked once he had recovered.

"What was what?" Alphonse answered.

"You mate! You were nice to him." Ron pointed at him accusingly. Alphonse smiled and shrugged.

"Well I didn't…."

"Al have you not been listening to anything Harry said?" Hermione interrupted.

"Yeah, Al, what about him being a _Death Eater_." Harry hissed, whispering the last two words. Alphonse found himself retreating from the passionate arguments and stances his friends had suddenly taken.

"Well, if you think about it, at most he's a Death Eater in training isn't he? Not a full blown Death Eat.." He offered lamely.

"That's the same bloody thing!" Ron snapped. "And what about Hermione? He called her a…mudblood." Hermione's argument died in her throat as she turned to smile proudly at Ron for coming to her defense.

"Well, uh, sticks and stones am I right?" The laugh from Alphonse seemed to be forced, Harry noticed but it just caused them even more outrage.

"What is wrong with you all of a sudden? Don't you care about standing up against our enemies? It's us against them." Harry had to admit that Ron's words might have been a bit exaggerated. All that had been exchanged was a bit of good natured banter but then again, Hermione's appreciation of him had probably gone to his head. Alphonse's eyes lost their defensive edge.

"Well see that's the thing, Voldemort is our enemy, not Malfoy. He is just a child who has been raised in the wrong circumstances. I know he may have been horrid to you for years but perhaps you were too quick to judge him." Alphonse's words and resolve crumbled to reveal his true age. Nothing but pure honestly was left. "And quite honestly, blood means little to me. Hell I don't even know what me and my brother are so what does it matter?"

"Quite right." The new voice addition to the group caused them all to turn around. Walking towards them were Edward and Luna. "You've let yourselves become obsessed with blood status too, wouldn't you agree?" She said. Harry, Ron and Hermione were struck by the words and all had to take a moment to process them.

"Hello Luna, Brother." Alphonse greeted cheerfully. Luna held the ever friendly smile on her face in a reply, but Edward seemed distracted. His eyes were darting hastily from side to side and he barely took the time to mutter a returned greeting.

"Professor Elric is everything alright?" Hermione asked picking up on Edward's agitated actions.

"Ah, no everything is fine," He replied absent mindedly "look while I would love to stand here and chat, Luna and I have something very important to talk about. So I'll see you at dinner alright?"

"Important? What are you…?" Harry began but Edward was already bustling down the hallway towards the courtyard. Luna went to follow him but after a couple of steps she turned to put the curious boys out of their misery.

"Oh there's nothing to talk about at all really. Professor Elric is just using me as a shield." She said and then happily returned to skipping after him.

"A shield? What does he need a shield from?" Ron muttered as they finally managed to get back on in motion.

"I can tell you." Alphonse offered. Harry, Ron and Hermione raised an eyebrow each, prompting him to answer.

"What?" They asked simultaneously. Alphonse smiled and pointed subtly at two figures they were walking towards.

"Well, him." Three heads turned towards Katie Bell and Roy Mustang. The two paid them no heed as they currently seemed to be discussing the pros and cons of the weather for the Care of Magical Creatures course. Roy acknowledged them with a smile and a swift nod but did not stop. "My Brother has been avoiding him since the chocolate catastrophe." Alphonse whispered to his friends once Roy was out of ear shot.

"That long?" Harry asked incredulously.

"They haven't spoken in weeks" Alphonse nodded as they hopped onto an already moving staircase. "Brother is still embarrassed."

"Well can you blame him? It was pretty bad." Ron remarked. "It's no surprise that they passed that educational decree banning all charmed chocolates."

"I suppose that throws a wrench in your plans doesn't it Ron" Harry grinned, nudging his friend playfully as they stepped through the portrait hole of the Fat Lady. "How are you meant to pull now?"

"Who needs love potions? I do just fine without. I've even got a date to Hogsmede tomorrow." Ron informed Harry proudly, completely missing when Hermione stopped dead in her tracks.

"Really? Who's the unlucky lady?" Harry laughed.

"Lavender Brown. Oh and she's interested in me because of my wit and charm. Not because she thinks I'm the Chosen One." He added with a smirk that Harry mirrored.

"But Ron, I am the Chosen One." He said arrogantly. The two best friends laughed and made their way up towards the boy's dormitory, completely forgetting their company.

"Honestly, they can be such boys sometimes." Hermione huffed, crossing her arms indignantly to which Alphonse patted her sympathetically.

"Look on the bright side Hermione." Alphonse offered supportively, leading her towards the cetee by the fire place. "At least you only have to hear it sometimes." He grinned.

* * *

"Alphonse, look I know you're all about your marks and responsibility but can't we just skip out of this one?" Harry pleaded that night as they both walked to the Slug Club as if to the gallows. It was just the two of them because Hermione had been otherwise engaged. None of them had known this until about an hour before the dinner was due to begin. No, not even Hermione had known but either way, it had ended up with just the two of them. So Harry had jokingly agreed that if Alphonse could not talk anyone else into it then Harry would help him save face and be his date.

"I'm sure no one will notice." He tried once more.

Alphonse allowed himself a brief moment of amusement at Harry's words, before his sense of duty kicked in.

"Harry you know we can't skip out on this one. Besides you need to do all the sucking up you can if you want to get hold of that memory of Slughorn's." Alphonse reminded him. Harry could only groan in frustration. It was true that he was getting nowhere as far as Slughorn was concerned. After his first attempt to sway the man (on which had failed miserably might he add) Harry had had little to no luck.

"I know, and that is why I have to go…you never switch off do you?" He smiled at Alphonse.

"That's an exaggeration. I switch off when I sleep." He replied.

"Well then, have you in your constantly brewing mind come up with a way to sway Slughorn?" Harry asked.

"Well the third times' the charm as they say," Alphonse said cheerfully opening the door for himself and Harry "although, next time you may want to try using a bit of your luck." Harry tutted at the boy but grinned anyway.

"You know Alphonse, I could've told you as much."

* * *

The next day things were beyond chilly within the group. The mood they had presumed would last only the morning stayed for hours despite them being in Hogsmede.

Harry had once again failed to coax Slughorn out of his secret memories. Hermione had had an awful time with her date and just wanted to pretend it had never happened. Ron had left for his date with Lavender and Alphonse was trailing behind wishing to be just about anywhere else. A cloud of misery settled above the group and refused to relieve its clutches even when Edward skittered up to them and snatched Alphonse away. The two brothers did not even halt to pretend that they were interested in sharing the persistent gloom of their company and made their excuses.

"We'll see you back at the castle in an hour yeah?" Alphonse said and then they both ran off, missing Harry and Hermione's grunted reply. The two Gryffindors walked together in silence for a bit, wallowing in their own thoughts and failures until Harry decided to speak.

"What do we do now?"

"Want to see if we can get hold of some Firewhiskey and get drunk in the common room?"

"Dear God yes."

* * *

After their speedy escape, Alphonse and Edward settled to a more comfortable pace. There was just enough time for a drink before heading back to the castle, so they made their way to the Hog's Head. Though not the best pub in Hogsmede it helped that it was much quieter. After all, the students of Hogwarts knew that one only met at the Hog's Head if you wanted to talk business. That is, if you wanted to talk business in secret.

"So, this may be on the vague side but is everything going alright Al?" Edward said as they sat themselves down.

"Well Brother that depends. Which of the various challenges in my life are you referring to?" He asked with a smile on his lips.

"I meant Malfoy." Edward said curtly but all the will power in the world could not stop him from mirroring his brother's smile.

"Well in that case…I'm not sure. He told me how to break the spell last month but then after that he did not speak to me at all. Oh but he did smile at me today. I suppose that's an accomplishment." Alphonse offered.

"Well considering how rare an occurrence that is, I'd say it was." Edward replied dryly. "Is it too soon to be talking him out of his assignment?" He continued to ask. Alphonse sighed.

"I'd say it's too soon to even be considering it. I need to get to know him better but honestly, I think he's actually a really good person Brother." Alphonse said then looked at his brother mirthfully. "I bet you're glad this responsibility is mine and not yours." He continued, knowing full well how terrible Edward was at dealing with delicate situations like Malfoy's.

"Trust me; it's no easy feat having to listen to you rabbit on about him like some loves struck girl either." He smirked. Alphonse gasped in mock outrage.

"I'm just doing my job here, besides at least I'm just acting love struck, you really are!" Alphonse accused, shoving a finger in Edwards's direction. His older brother scoffed and flicked the finger away.

"I don't know what you're talking about." He muttered darkly.

"Oh really? Because I can't help but notice that Professor Mustang has been ever so lonely recently. He's had to resort to the company of Katie Bell." Alphonse remarked. A smirk graced his lips when he saw the dark expression on his brother's face become downright homicidal at the mention of Roy and any female.

"Katie who?" Edward asked and Alphonse had to admit that he was impressed by how composed his brother sounded as he shifted uncomfortably in his seat.

"You know, Katie Bell. She's a Ravenclaw prefect." He provided putting Edward out of his torture.

"Oh her." Edward visibly relaxed at this. "The locket girl."

"Locket girl?" Alphonse prompted, grabbing his drink. Edward nodded and leaned forward.

"Yes she offered me a hand during the first week. I noticed that she was wearing a locket, quite a nice one actually, nice blue stone. Anyway when I forgot her name, I just decided to call her that." Edward explained, shrugging his shoulder and emptying the Butterbeer.

"Brother, I'm not an expert but maybe you should try memorizing your students' names. I know she takes your class." He said, fishing through his pockets and pulling out some sickles. Throwing the tip carelessly on the table, the two brothers rose to their feet and stepped outside.

"Besides that locket you described sounds an awful lot like one I saw just earlier on…" Though the Hog's Head was not the most luxurious pub, it helped that it was on the outskirts of Hogsmede. It also helped that any patron of the pub, upon leaving it would find themselves well on the way to Hogwarts. The pub was surreptitiously placed just off the path past the Whomping Willow. This was why when a scream broke the winter silence of the tree, both Edward and Alphonse heard it. Dropping their conversation, they ran. What they saw had two sets of eyes widen as Katie Bell (speak of the devil) rose suspended in the air. Her head lulled against her chest and the scream echoed as three students watched on in horror.

It was Harry and Hermione, Alphonse noted as he rushed towards them demanding to know what was happening. He did not need to worry about solving it because Edward had already drawn his wand and was tracing out the pattern.

"Finite Incantatem!" The spell was cast and the curse lost its effect but the saviour had not been Edward. The group watched as gravity took hold and Katie's body fell limply into Edward's arms. The blonde inspected her, searching for whatever it was that had cursed her.

"It's the locket." Four heads span around to see Roy Mustang walking towards them, an rarely seen serious look on his face. "Take it off." Edward nodded dumbly and removed the locket. He subtly held it at an angle so that Alphonse could see it from where he was stood behind them.

"What do you suppose it's cursed with?" Edward mumbled, looking intently at it.

"I don't know. We'll have to leave that to Severus. I think it'd be best for now to take her to the Hospital Wing." Roy replied but Edward was already in motion towards the castle. Roy smiled at him then turned towards the girl's friend who was stood to the side, looking more than a little terrified. "Could you please go and find Professor Snape and Flitwick? I think its best they know." He ordered then turned to follow his colleague. The girl nodded quickly then scampered off back towards Hogsmede. The teachers were having a meeting at The Three Broomsticks.

The moment they were alone, Hermione and Harry burst into a tirade of theories and questions concerning the locket. They completely missed Alphonse's reaction as he silently fell into step with them. One glance at the locket had him sighing with disappointment. It was the exact one he had seen on Malfoy just the day before. It both annoyed and hurt him to think that even after all his efforts they still had a lot more work to do. It was either that or face consequences Alphonse knew he was not ready to.

"Stupid Draco." He muttered darkly under his breath, kicking the snow dejectedly.

Hermione did not hear him. But something in the twitch of Harry's head indicated that he did.

* * *

It was obvious that Hogwarts was having a slow year. The peacefulness of the past couple of weeks was enough but what went to confirm it was just how many of the teachers turned up at the Hospital Wing. All of them were keen to offer their help and advice as they crowded around the bed. Either they were all bored out of their minds, or Katie was incredibly popular among the teachers. For some reason, Edward was veering towards the first excuse. It must have been something to do with their eagerness, he mused. There was something very wrong with a system if teachers turned up to investigate a cursed locket just for kicks but he was one to talk, really. Edward just hoped Alphonse had got a good look at it before he had left because they most definitely would not be getting it back soon.

After explaining to his colleagues multiple times what he had seen of the incident, Edward quietly took his leave and slipped out of the heavy doors of the wing. Katie was in many safe hands and Edward was busy. He needed to find Al and confirm certain suspicions. Edward wrung his hands in distraction as he started down the corridor, only vaguely aware of the presence at his side.

"Merlin they can natter can't they?" Edward nodded in response.

"They need it. A bit of excitement will do them good." He remarked then stopped dead in his tracks when he realised just who he was talking to. Roy fell into step with him, grinning when the other man began to mentally decimate himself for being caught out. He casually threw his arm around Edward's shoulder.

"So does that mean that your life is all spells and explosions?" He prodded with a smirk but it fell at the jerk Edward made to rid them of contact.

"Look, I'd love to talk but…I can't…I've got things to do…like um, setting my desk on fire." Edward rushed before resuming in the way they were headed only at three times the original speed. Usually Roy would have laughed at Edward's brilliant excuse but he could honestly not muster anything more than a frown.

"You can't avoid me forever Edward!" He shouted after him. "We're going to have to talk at some point." Edward turned to face him but only barely. He kept his form hunched and defensive. Just before he turned the corner he turned to meet Roy's gaze defiantly.

"We have nothing to talk about Roy." And then he was gone. It was quite childish of Roy but he could not help it. He crossed his arms and his frown deepened ever so slightly.

"We'll see about that." He muttered darkly under his breath. It was getting ridiculous. Of course, he had been embarrassed about the chocolate situation too but he had not taken it this far. Neither should have Edward. Roy clenched his fists in determination. No matter what, he was going to get Edward to speak to him again, even if it meant tying the man to a chair to do so.

Roy did not stop one single moment to ask himself why on earth he cared so much.

* * *

So if you need anyone to blame for the atrocious wait for this chapter blame my cat. Everytime I tried to write he would do the obnoxious thing of sitting his arse bang on the keyboard. So yeah….totally Alan's fault. Oh and this chapter is 4000 words too. I'm getting good at this.

Thank you so much for standing by me and reviewing. I'm ever so grateful.

Chika


	18. Pick it up and Try Again

Chapter XVIII

Cherry Syndrome

The alchemy books fell shut with a heavy noise and three sighs of relief.

"Well I suppose that would be all then." Hermione said and looked proudly at the pile of notes she had written.

"Yep," Ron grinned, pointedly ignoring the look sent his way at the pathetic attempt he had made at taking notes, "until next year then?" Four months and eighteen lessons passed and Harry, Ron and Hermione were torn between never wanting to hear the word 'alchemy' again and never putting the quill down. At this point however, the first feeling dominated all of them. The next day, was the last of the autumn term and with it, also the final alchemy class. It had been difficult but the steps they had made were tremendous. Unfortunately, they had not had the chance to try their hand at the practical side of alchemy.

"What on earth made you think that was it?" Edward scoffed, pulling his desk drawer open. The students watched as he retrieved a small tin box. Inside were five small pieces of broken chalk. Alphonse took the box and handed them a piece each. "It would be such a shame for you to forget everything over the holidays. I thought I'd give you something that'll stick." Edward explained with a grin. Hermione just about squealed with excitement.

"Do you mean we're going to try it?" She asked, already dropping to her knees to scribble at the stone floor. Alphonse laughed at her enthusiasm then crouched down to help her. This left Ron and Harry staring deftly at their chalk.

"Is this your idea of a Christmas present Edward?" Ron asked reluctantly to which Edward chuckled.

"Oh no, Ronald, your Christmas present is that you don't get to leave until it's worked." He smirked.

"But you said it was nearly impossible for us to do." Harry commented in place of Ron. Edward hummed in agreement but the smile only grew wider.

"Let's just say I believe in you." He encouraged and patted them both on the head. Harry and Ron exchanged uneasy glances, until they both felt gravity setting in on them as Edward applied more pressure to his grip. With a yelp they both fell to their knees, chalk in hand. "Good luck boys." While Harry and Ron went to work, grumbling about abusive teachers and impossible tasks, Edward sat back in his chair and grabbed the nearest book. After all there was no need not to get comfortable, they were going to be there for a while….

Three hours and many tears of frustration later, Edward was jolted out of his reading trance by a triumphant yell made by Hermione. An ice blue light flashed around the room as before the eyes of everyone, Hermione transmuted a slab of the floor into a goblet.

"Awesome!" Edward cheered and jumped out of his seat. Both he and Alphonse had their arms around Hermione's shoulders in an instant, showering her with praise. "Brightest witch of your age you are." Ron watched on sullenly as a smile spread across Hermione's lips that could have split her face.

"Thank you very much. It's all because of your teaching. I'm sure Harry and Ron will manage it too." As if on cue, another flash blinded the group. Once it was gone, Harry's own slab had changed as well. Ron's followed suit within minutes.

"Well it looks like we're a lot better than I thought, Al." Edward said with a grin. His brother rolled his eyes at him.

"Don't listen to him, you three are brilliant." Alphonse encouraged warmly. The three nodded their thanks and smiled. "We've actually prepared presents for you." He added, nodding towards his older brother. Edward grinned and pulled out three wrapped gifts from under the desk. "Merry Christmas!"

"It was all Al's idea." He explained, handing them their respective presents. "Think of it as a rite of passage." The trio exchanged confused looks before tearing the wrapping off.

"What's this?" The little, tin boxes were all identical. They were red with rounded silver edges and inside was a brand new, neatly stacked set of white chalk.

"It's for your lessons." Edward answered. Ron raised an eyebrow.

"You got us chalk? Big spenders aren't you?" He said sarcastically earning himself an elbow to the gut from Hermione. The Elric brothers were not too bothered though. Instead they edged closer.

"Ah but you see the point of the present isn't the chalk. Look at the lid." They did. Engraved on each lid was an eerie symbol. It was a black crucifix, engulfed by a snake. Two small wings were suspended above the cross completing the image. Edward and Alphonse smiled fondly at the symbol.

"It was our master's mark. She passed it on to us when our training was completed." Alphonse elaborated. "Now we're teaching you, so in turn, the mark is now yours too."

Harry could not quite describe the feelings that welled up in him at that point. All he could do was clutch the box and smile appreciatively at his teachers, until a thought occurred to him.

"Wait, does that mean this is our last class?" He said with bewilderment. Both Ron and Hermione's smiles dropped at the though. Edward scoffed and returned to his desk seat, picking up the book he had been reading.

"Course not. You're going to practice creating over the break. Then when you get back, it's time to focus on destroying. After all why else do you think you're here?" He flipped open to the page he had been on and was engulfed in it once more. He ushered them out with one final dismissive wave. "That would be all. Good night students." He drawled. Harry, Ron and Hermione rolled their eyes at this but the skip to their step still remained.

"Good night, Professor." They chimed and left the room to return to the Gryffindor dorms. A moment of silence reigned as the two brothers got comfortable. Even if there was nothing pertinent for them to discuss, Alphonse and Edward still liked to end the day by spending time together. But they would be having company this time. Harry, Ron and Hermione had barely left the room before another set of feet swept in.

"Good evening Brothers Elric." Dumbledore greeted, smiling pleasantly with his hands folded loosely behind his back. "I see you've just wrapped up your final class." Alphonse and Edward both shifted their attention to nod in greeting towards the headmaster.

"Yes we have. They results have been better than we expected. We will be able to start focusing on the Horcruxes soon after the New Year." Alphonse said, getting to his feet to offer the headmaster a seat which was politely declined. Dumbledore's hands came out from behind his back and settled for stroking his bead instead.

"Very good, that should coincide perfectly with Harry's other private lessons." He murmured more to himself than the others.

"How that boy is managing is beyond me." Edward chipped in, leaning forward to rest his chin in his hands.

"Harry is a very bright young man. He has managed to find a way to balance it all." Dumbledore said offhandedly. "Now then, on to business, I'm sure you both know why I am here. We all know very well that the incident with Miss. Bell a couple of weeks ago was Mr. Malfoy's doing." He continued solemnly, looking at both boys from above the tilt of his half-moon spectacles. Alphonse and Edward sighed.

"We know Headmaster but unfortunately these things take time." Edward offered weakly. Dumbledore only shook his head in response and replied.

"This is no simple matter we are speaking of Mr. Elric. Unfortunately on of the students was harmed and sent to St. Mungo's. I'm beginning to wonder if perhaps we should rethink your involvement concerning Mr. Malfoy."

"No!" All eyes fell to Alphonse. He had a hand halfway to his mouth, lips slightly parted and eyes just a little wider than usual. It was as if he were shocked himself by his exaggerated reaction. Alphonse glanced at Edward who merely gave him a funny look before turning back to Dumbledore.

"Look, we have things under control. What happened with Miss. Bell was unfortunate but she is going to be alright. We just didn't factor into our plans that he may use other people as mediums." Edward rushed, the plan suddenly becoming much more important to him than before. But the look of concern on Dumbledore's face was gone. Instead, he was smiling enigmatically between the brothers.

"Well, I trust you know you are doing." Reaching into his pocket, Dumbledore retrieved a small sweet, popped it into his mouth and turned his back. "Just try to make sure that no more people get hurt in the process. Good night Mr. and Mr. Elric." With one final sweep of his long cloak, the Headmaster was gone. Edward and Alphonse looked at one another and blinked a couple of times in silence. The look to Alphonse's expression was just a little out of place, somewhat guilty but Edward decided not to harp on it. He just raised his eyebrow and returned to reading.

"What's with you recently?" Edward asked obnoxiously. Alphonse opened and closed his mouth several times before determining that he really had no reasonable answer.

* * *

It was Friday evening, lunch was quite animated. The season cheers along with the ends of classes brought a bounce to each student's actions. The snow that lightly fell from the ceiling and turned into silver glitter on its descent only added to the festive season and the rich feast before them brought smiles to everyone's face.

"Oh shit." Harry's fork dropped to his plate in terrible realisation. Alphonse, Ron and Hermione immediately left their own meal in concern.

"What?" They all asked simultaneously. Harry met their eyes in dismay.

"Slughorn's Christmas Party." He said. "That's tonight?" Hermione frowned.

"Yes?" She informed. The frown on Harry's face deepened as he swore.

"Bugger."

"What?"

"I haven't got a date." Both Hermione and Ron seemed to deflate at his words, their figures slumping with relief.

"Is that all?" Ron laughed punching Harry playfully in the arm. Alphonse chimed in with his own chuckle. Hermione did not find it as funny.

"Harry James Potter! You had me worried!" She scolded, smacking his finger harshly with a spoon.

"Relax Hermione. I don't think you realise that to us men it's a huge deal." Ron countered and naturally a whole new round of bickering ensued. This time Alphonse really did begin to laugh whole heartedly.

"Ron's right Hermione, it is important. Especially considering him, you, Ginny and Alphonse already have dates." Harry complained, rubbing his hand.

"Well that's not quite true. I'm dateless." Alphonse said albeit cheerfully then he smiled warmly and nodded towards the Ravenclaw table. "Coincidentally, I believe Luna is too." Ron returned to his meal and said through bites.

"Well isn't that great then Al? You and Luna can go tog…" Harry was on his feet within seconds.

"Sorry, I'll be right back." He excused distractedly before walking over to her. Harry's three friends watched all the surrounding girls grow envious as a smile graced Luna's lips and she nodded. Alphonse reached for his goblet smugly.

"Guess it's just me then." He murmured, taking a sip. Hermione breathed a light hearted chuckle.

"You're too nice Al." To which Alphonse shrugged.

"Yeah well, Luna deserved it." He said happily then turned to Hermione with a grin and offered her his elbow. "Now then, shall we go and prepare Miss. Granger?" Hermione giggled and linked her arm with his. The two rose to their feet and sauntered out of the Great Hall in friendly conversation. It was Harry who had to return to his seat to find his best friend seething.

After Harry and Ron finished dinner and returned to their dormitories to don dress robes, Harry found himself alone outside the Ravenclaw common room waiting for Luna. He tried his hardest to ignore the giggling of the other girls who walked past him, knowing exactly who he was waiting for but after a while it became annoying. Instead, Harry opted for staring defiantly at anyone who so much as breathed wrongly. He leaned casually against the stone wall of the hallway and looked down at his bowtie. Harry felt guilty. That was a concrete fact. It had been over two months since he had last had a concrete conversation with Luna and now it was only because he was lonely. What kind of low, shallow friend was he? Never mind the fact that he and Luna had been for ages teetering around in their relationship for almost a year now…

Harry was brought from his musings by the delicate tap of footsteps coming towards him. The pink shoes were what he saw first then when he looked up he could not help but smile widely. Luna looked like a Christmas tree but it was just so her.

"I thought I'd go with something festive." She murmured, fingering her skirt. Her hair was unruly but something was shining through in it.

"You look beautiful Luna." He said and without thinking reached out the pat down her hair endearingly. She smiled back then turned away.

"Shall we go then? I'm quite looking forward to feeling like part of a group." She mused so cheerfully that Harry could not resist the laugh that crept out of him.

"Alright let's go." He agreed. They linked arms and walked in the direction of the party. By his life, Harry could not remember why they had even stopped speaking. He did not know what it was but Luna just seemed to understand him. They spoke pleasantly and animatedly all the way to the party and upon entering did not even notice the approaching camera before it was too late. The lights were blinding. They got into Harry's eyes before he even realised they were there and whilst he was rubbing his eyes, trying to get over the dazzling light dancing before his eyelids, all he could hear was the annoying wittering of an all too familiar voice.

Who the hell had invited Rita bloody Skeeter?

"Well if it isn't the boy who lived. Oh my, he's cut his hair, that's going in the tabloids and who is this lovely lady? I see Harry Potter likes them blonde…" Harry planted a smile so fake it would have hurt to look at it on his face as he greeted her. The best thing with that woman was just to wait it out.

"Oh my, what have we here?" It would seem Harry's tactic worked. Rita's attentions had been shifted. He looked up to see who her next unfortunate victim was. He sniggered at the sight of Alphonse and Edward looking as if they wanted to walk right back out of the door they had just entered. Well rather them than him. Harry scanned the room for an excuse to leave and just like that he found one. Ginny was alone by the drinks, she was staring dejectedly into the bowl, her hands hung at her side. Without another thought Harry left the chattering group and went to speak to her. All Luna did, was watch him go.

"Everything alright?" The soothing voice of Alphonse Elric, reached her ears as she turned to find him smiling at her with two drinks in hand. He offered her one which she took appreciatively and sipped quietly. A small, sad smile graced her lips as she brushed a loose strand of blonde hair from her face.

"It would seem I have lost the affections of the Chosen One." She mumbled looking sadly into the goblet. To her surprise, Alphonse laughed. It was not a cold laugh but felt more like a reassuring gesture. He looked at her and did just that with his hands, patting her on the back.

"You know I always thought you deserved better anyway." He offered. Luna's thoughts drifted to the jewel hanging from her earring, a small round coin with a snake enveloped crucifix and black wings. Alphonse leaned forward and touched this very earring and winked at her. "Don't settle for anything short of the best Luna." He reassured then drew back and ushered her back to Edward.

"So tell me Mr. Elric, how's your first two terms at Hogwarts been? Still as short as ever I see. Do the students like you? Do you miss life as a freelancer? Have you found love with any of the professors…no strike that any of the students?" Rita bombarded.

"I beg your fucking pardon? Of course not!" Edward shouted back in outrage, crossing his arms. "How lowly do you think of me?" He exclaimed. Rita, annoying as she may be, was excellent at her job and did not seem fazed in the slightest.

"Well you can say what you will Sweetie but a little birdie told me that you have in fact found love." She said, he quill scratching away with lightning speed. "I dare say you've found it in a tall dark Hogwarts Supervisor by the name of Roy M. Mustang. How does he feel about your height issues?" Edward was struck completely and utterly speechless but there was something, something in his eyes that suggested it would be in everyone's best interests to take one large step back.

"You…." He began dangerously, his arms rising, little twitches appearing all over him as the thought of throttling this woman became ever so appealing. Alphonse was the only one who saw where this was going and chose to act. He step forward and grabbed his brother's shoulders firmly.

"Ah no Brother don…" Luckily though, it never got that far because at that very moment, Filch pushed past them into the room, cackling triumphantly.

"Let go of me you filthy squib!" He had Draco Malfoy held firmly at the ear. Filch without a single look at his audience marched straight towards Slughorn and threw Malfoy forward. Slughorn watched in apprehension as Malfoy sneered and straightened himself out.

"Found him snooping around, obviously looking to get into the party. Didn't get past me and good ol' Mrs. Norris though did he?" Filch bragged smugly.

"I should have you and that filthy cat incarcerated, you revolting…" Malfoy scoffed and exclaimed with a voice full of disgust. It was what did him in. Slughorn seemed to activate into teacher mode and stretched out to perfect posture.

"Mr. Malfoy, I will not have this level of vulgarity at my party! Honestly it is students like you that give the Slytherin house a bad name. You should take a page out of Mr. Zabini's book, perhaps then I would allow you in the club." With this, Slughorn nodded towards Blaise who was currently trying to blend in with the group of Slytherins who were trying to shrink against the wall. The group winced as betrayal flashed across Malfoy's face that pierced at all of their consciences. Draco could do nothing but chuckle. Of course there were Slytherins in the Slug Club. He looked darkly towards Blaise.

"Zabini, how nice to see you, thought I smelt something repulsive." He sniped, crossing his arms and raising an eyebrow. They had been the closest thing he had to friends at Hogwarts but to hell with them all. He did not need anyone. Not even Snape who he knew was looming in the background.

"Mr. Malfoy!" Slughorn snapped. "I'm going to have to ask you to leave. Argus please remove him." Filch grinned so wide it could have split his face as he gripped Malfoy's arm and began to tug violently. Slughorn watch stonily until….

"Ah Professor please don't have him removed." Everyone's, even Malfoy's eyes widened incredulously as a Gryffindor stepped forward and put a hand on Draco's shoulder.

"Mr. Elric? What is the meaning of this?" Slughorn questioned, interest captured. Alphonse shifted uncomfortably for a minute.

"Ah well…" He murmured bouncing from one foot to another.

"What in Merlin's name do you think you're doing?" Draco hissed harshly and the boy who appeared to have come to his awkward rescue.

"Well you see Professor Slughorn...I invited him." Alphonse offered, motioning flippantly between them.

"WHAT?" It was not only Harry, Ginny and Hermione who exclaimed this. No it was pretty much everyone in the room, all except Luna and Edward who merely exchanged a smug glance and a whispered 'I told you so'. Slughorn opened his mouth to question this but Alphonse got in first.

"You see Professor, we agreed that we'd meet here to avoid any inconveniences so we didn't arrive together. I suppose Mal…Draco was just running a bit late right?" Slughorn looked from one boy to the other in confusion.

"Is this true Mr. Malfoy." Alphonse looked pointedly at Draco, willing him to agree. It worked.

"Yes Professor." He muttered. Slughorn smiled widely.

"Well you should have said so in the first place. Alphonse is one of my best students. If I had known I never would have suggested you leave. I apologise Mr. Malfoy." He gushed pleasantly, patting them both on the shoulder. "In that case, enjoy the party." He bid them then turned his back to leave. The rest of the room followed suit seeing that the show was over but a new subject had sparked within each conversation. Alphonse let out a sigh of relief then turned to the other boy.

"Oh wow if looks could kill." He commented at the death glare Malfoy was sending his way.

"What did you do that for?" He challenged. Alphonse took a step back at the dark look he was being given.

"Well knowing you, you'd rather not be kicked out with an entire room there to hold it against you." Al explained, holding his hands up as if he were surrendering.

"I'd rather that than be saved by the likes of you." Malfoy scoffed defiantly to which Alphonse shrugged.

"We both know that's not true but whatever. Sorry for wasting your time Malfoy." He quipped, stepping away from the boy. Let Malfoy do what he wanted, there was only so much Alphonse could do for him in the end. The look in Malfoy's eyes softened at the unexpected surrender just a tiny degree but he still turned his back and stormed out of the room. Alphonse watched him leave then frowned when he saw the billowing, midnight form of Severus Snape follow after him. Well at least someone was able to lecture Malfoy, even if it was not him. Suddenly, the air around him grew incredibly uncomfortable as he felt someone breathing, purposefully down his neck. The smug air around Edward was so strong, he could have bottled it. Alphonse just sighed.

"Please don't say anything." He pleaded, not even bothering to turn around. He did not have to. Edward stepped smoothly to his side, smirking widely.

"Say anything about what? Honestly I have no idea what you are talking about." Edward almost sang, nudging his brother. "Say I didn't know that Malfoy was your date. I thought you were going stag." He added. Edward was an older brother after all and this was just one of those things he could not let go.

"Argh, you're so annoying sometimes!" Alphonse snapped half-heartedly. All he got in return was another nudge.

"It's why I'm here. Now go on Romeo, go after your man." Edward ordered. Alphonse pulled a face at him but nodded and jogged out of the room.

* * *

Malfoy was pushed against the wall with Snape drawling something into his ear. Harry was not close enough to hear the exact words but he got the gist of it. Whatever was going on was not good and Harry was increasingly getting the awful feeling that Alphonse was in on it. He was not sure if he could handle the thought of having to fight friends. It was a feeling he never wanted to repeat but sadly, Harry just may have landed himself in exactly the same position as he was in last year.

…_.Dark Lord…..unbreakable vow…assistance….chosen…..Dark Lord…._

Malfoy struggled against the grip Snape had on him but the words were obviously coming across clearly. He slumped against the wall and just nodded sullenly at the man's words. Snape, obviously satisfied stepped back.

"You'll do well to keep that in mind Mr. Malfoy." He drawled with such a sense of finality that Harry was ready to leave just as Snape was but another, new voice stopped him.

"Urgh what do you bloody want?" Malfoy spat, the stress cracking his voice.

"Look, I get it, you're having a tough night but please just listen to me." Harry's stomach dropped and he felt a shiver run down his spine. That was Alphonse. Harry crept closer towards the end of the hallway, peeking around the corner to watch the two young men argue.

"What do you care, go on then Elric why don't you have a go too?" Draco growled, taking a step towards Alphonse. The two were barely a breath away. Heights matched and expressions equally as determined.

"I'll just say one thing Malfoy: back off." Alphonse ground out, not swaying in the least but holding the Slytherin's gaze with everything he had. Malfoy frowned.

"What do you…?" He began but Alphonse was obviously in no mood to mess around.

"Do you honestly think no one is noticing?" Alphonse's tone almost had a laugh to it but any hint of mirth was lacking. The falter in Malfoy's façade was obvious even from where Harry was standing. Whatever was going on, Malfoy had not known of Alphonse's involvement but that was still no help. Alphonse's expression lightened and a look of concern washed over him as he looked down to the point where Malfoy's neck met his chest. "Look I know you don't think we're that close and I'm not sure what's going but I'm worried about you. Why can't you allow me to offer you just a little help?"

"No." Alphonse looked back up again at the blunt statement. Their eyes met and Malfoy seemed to hesitate. "I can't... you… look there's just something I need to do alone. I've been chosen for this. I don't need help from you or Snape or anyone. So just stay out of my business" Malfoy said. His will was coming back with every word uttered and by the end of the sentence Malfoy was stood tall and glaring just as he normally did as he repeated his professor's words. "You'll do well to keep that in mind Elric." Harry watched Malfoy leave. He watched Alphonse slump against the enormous windowsill and tap his fingers against the edge in frustration as he muttered under his breath in a language Harry did not recognise. Two English words did however make their way into the fray repeatedly.

"Stupid brat, stupid brat, stupid brat." Alphonse muttered, the taps increasing in both noise and frequency.

"I'm guessing it went well?" Alphonse's cursing was interrupted by his brother joining him.

"Oh absolutely phenomenal. He'll probably never speak to me again." Alphonse wailed the sense of failure slowly setting in again. Edward just laughed and handed his brother something to drink.

"Hey you know what they say: if at first you don't succeed…" He began. Alphonse looked at his brother and smiled.

"Pick it up and try again?" He finished. Edward chuckled.

"Well that too. I was going to go with 'destroy all evidence of you ever trying'" He continued and full out laughed this time. Alphonse groaned and rolled his eyes.

"Brother I have a headache." He complained, resting his head against Edward's shoulder. Edward wrapped his arm around him comfortingly and smiled.

"You're right Al. I think it's time for bed. We can try again with Malfoy tomorrow."

* * *

Almost 5000 words there. I hope you enjoyed my pretty Alphonse-centric update. I am so sorry for the wait. I know you probably don't want to hear excuses but I'm in my final year of IB and my life has just been nothing short of hectic recently. I can't give any specific dates but I will try to update soon. Until then please bear with me.


	19. A Stupid Kiss

Cherry Syndrome

Chapter XIX

Edward knew he was being stupid, beyond stupid in fact, but no matter what, the fact remained that he could not help it. Roy and him were business partners, yet they had not had a clear cut conversation in weeks. Edward was suffering from this, his work was suffering from this and it was all due to that ridiculous kiss they had shared in the streets of Hogsmede nearly two months before. Now, despite what Roy liked to say, Edward was not a prude. With his literal age nearing ninety he had his fair share of relationships under the belt. However, none of them had ever been with a male nor had they ever been with anyone who looked anything like his old boss. This was why Edward could not simply get over this kiss. Everytime he saw Roy he was reminded of it and everytime he was reminded of it he had to think of Colonel Mustang and everytime he thought of the Colonel, Edward's nerves got the better of him.

So, essentially, forgetting about it was easier said than done. Edward sighed and sunk further into his office chair, shuffling the letters before him. It was six o'clock in the morning. The autumn term finished the day before which meant that in the afternoon the students would be leaving for Christmas holidays. Harry would be going to the Burrow with Ron for the holidays and would be under constant supervision. This gave Alphonse and Edward the chance to remain in Hogwarts for the coming two weeks and do some much needed research. Furthermore, Edward was not going to lie to himself, the break was most welcome. He felt as if he had been working himself to the bone as of recent.

The chair creaked beneath him as Edward once more leaned forward to inspect a particular letter which was stamped with the seal of the Ministry. It was a letter from the Minister, mostly formalities such as wishing him and Roy well and another paragraph concerning the state of their department at the Ministry. Edward paused on this particular section of the letter and frowned.

"_It would be most convenient, however not entirely necessary for one of the two High Inquisitors to return indefinitley to their original position in the Ministry's Department of Education following the Christmas Holidays. This would be due to..."_

Edward blinked and reread the passage. In essence what the Minister was requesting was for one of the two, either Roy or Edward to return to their position in the Ministry for good as soon as the Christmas holidays were over. Now, Edward liked to consider himself a reasonable man. He valued himself to be capable of rational thought and sound judgement when the situation called for it. Unfortunately, in reality this was only true some of the time. Most times Edward would act quickly and purely on instinct. In this case, the rash and impulsive part of Edward's brain took over and before he entirely considered the consequences, he was already scribbling down a reply to the Minister.

"_Dear Minister of Magic, Rufus Scrimgeour,_

_I hope you are doing well. Congratulations on your handling of the Death Eater trials the other was most impressed. It is something we have been following keenly. Mr. Mustang and I are doing well at Hogwarts. The school is running smoothly and there are few matters of complaint that need to be covered. Regarding your request, I, myself am currently occupied with my teaching position here at Hogwarts thus I would find it difficult to return to office. However, Mr. Mustang has recently spoken favourably of returning to his former position in the Ministry. I am sure that he would be open to consider this. _

_Kind Regards,_

_Edward Elric"_

Without thought nor falter, Edward tied the parchment to the Ministry owl and sent it on it's way. His thought process had been quite simple: Roy was currently causing him problems and hurting his work. Get rid of Roy. It was only as he watched the bird disappear behind the mountains along with his stupid letter that he began to reconsider. It was true that for now things were terrible between himself and Roy but he was one of the few allies that he had at the school. Could he really afford to lose that because of a stupid kiss?

"Brother?"

Edward's stomach did a flip. He whirled around to the sight of Alphonse standing at his desk with the Minister's letter clutched in his hands. There was a doubtful look on his face as he glanced at the letter. This doubt made it into his voice with his next words.

"Brother, please tell me you did not just send Roy back to the Ministry." He probed, already shaking his head. Alphonse knew the answer of course. It was a wonder he even bothered asking anymore. Edward at least had the decency to look slightly ashamed.

"Isn't it rude to go through other people's mail?" He defended stubbornly but Alphonse did not let him get away that easily.

"Not if its for their own good. Is this still because of that love potion thing?" He asked incredulously. The silence that he was faced with was enough of a reply for Alphonse to sigh and walk around the desk towards his brother.

"Al, wha—" Edward looked his brother in the eye only briefly, before Alphonse was in his face and punching him square in the arm. "Ow! What the hell was that for?" He demanded, rubbing his probably bruising arm. Metal suit or not, Alphonse packed one hell of a punch. Edward glared accusingly at his brother but faltered when he saw the scowl embedding itself into Alphonse's face.

"Dammit, I already have to deal with one temperamental teenager, I don't need you acting like one too Brother." He snapped. Edward scoffed. "It's not funny Edward! I know you're having problems yourself but you can't just send off one of the few allies we have because you're experiencing a bit of confusion." Alphonse continued. He ran his hand through his hair and huffed once more. "Look it's weird for me too that Mustang is here and I know that's its difficult to get over that but you're just going to have to face that he's not the Colonel. I get that it must be even weirder for you because you like this Mustang so much but please, Brother, we can't let this trip us up. It was only a kiss anyway!" Alphonsed looked his brother in the eye for every word. Edward mirrored him, completely bewildered.

"Like him...What? Al, what the hell do you mean with 'like him'?" Edward struggled out, eyebrows knotting further. He looked so utterly confused that Alphonse could not help but take pity on him. This time when he spoke, his voice was softer and much closer to his usual tone.

"Isn't it obvious, Brother? You like him. Not the Colonel but Professor Roy Mustang, the one from this world." He explained. Something flashed through Edward's eyes but it was far to fast for Alphonse to identify..recognition, perhaps? "Brother, what exactly would you say you feel about him? Try and compare that to the Colonel." That was a language that Edward could understand. Alphonse was asking him to speak logically. Edward put a finger to his chin and frowned pensively but as soon as he spoke the frown became a much softer smile.

"I appreciate him. Not in the same way as the Colonel. The Colonel had my respect. He was my collegue and to a certain extent my life line. With Roy, I don't have to be around him. It's more like...I want to be close to him." Edward hesitated but his brother nudged him, urging him to continue. "I want to be his friend." This was the particular moment that Edward's actions over the past two months hit home and he turned around to look out the window. An embarassed groan escaped him as he rose his hands to his forhead and rubbed his temples. "Oh Al, I'm such an idiot. What the hell did I do that for? I've just lost us one of the only people we knew was on our side." He groaned, wanting nothing more than to drive his head into a wall. Alphonse chuckled and patted Edward on the back.

"It's ok, Brother. Your dumb mistakes have a way of working themselves out." He comforted lightly. "If anything, this gives us a chance to see where Mustang's loyalties truly lie. Hogwarts or the Ministry."

* * *

The hallways of Hogwarts were definitely Roy's favourite part of the castle. Not only was the architecture grand and the patterns gorgeous. The portraits were also incredibly pleasant, for the most part. Wandering the hallways aimlessly between classes gave Roy the chance to bump into all sorts of characters from all sorts of groups. The ghosts, the portraits, the houselves, Dobby in particular was quite impressive, students, fellow teachers, all made for wonderful company when he had nothing better to do. The job of Hogwarts Supervisor, aside from the copious amount of reports the Minister required and the occaisional security checks did not involve much and since Edward still refused to speak to him, he had left the blonde to handle the reports. So all Roy had to do was the odd safety run to make sure the school was still safe. It was. Roy was bored.

Somewhere in the back of his mind, Roy knew that with Edward talking to him again things would be better but he had decided not to push it. Yes, it still annoyed him to no end that Edward dashed in the opposite direction at the very sight of him but there was not much he could do. At first, he thought that if he pushed, then Edward would eventually break but he was being more stubborn than a triple knot. So the conclusion Roy had come to was to just leave him until he came to terms with the kiss they shared two months ealier. Until then, Roy would have to entertain himself in other ways. With a glance forward, just as Roy rounded a corner he knew exactly what he was temporarily going to humour himself with.

"Minister, what gives us the honour?" Roy asked, plastering on his professional smile. The Minister of Magic looked up with an equally stale smile and turned slightly away from Dumbledore to greet Roy.

"Ah, Mr. Mustang. I was just here for a meeting with Headmaster Dumbledore." Rufus Scrimgeour explained seizing Roy's hand and shaking it heartily. The three men exchanged a couple pleasantries . Roy remembering his manners in the face of his boss. It was at that point that the conversation turned to Roy and his role at Hogwarts. Scrimgeour turned to Roy with a careful look in his eye. "I hope you're being good to them. No one wants a repeat of last year, least of all me." He continued glancing cautiously between Roy and Dumbledore. They both shook their heads in reply.

"I can assure you that Mr. Mustang has been nothing short of courteous to both the staff and the students. It has been a treat having him here." Dumbledore confirmed, nodding his head slightly. Roy chuckled.

"Headmaster, you make it sound like I'm leaving." Roy remarked causing the Minister to look at him with a hint of bemusement. Dumbledore merely smiled, his eyes twinkling away as usual.

"But, Mr. Mustang you are." Scrimgeour replied with a frown. Roy blinked and crossed his arms in confusion before prompting the man to continue.

"I beg your pardon?"

"That was what our meeting was about. We were under the impression that you intended to return to your work at the Ministry." The Minister explained. The confusion in his voice deepening with every word. Roy mirrored this sentiment, shaking his head.

"I'm sorry for any confusion Minister but I did no such thing. I thoroughly enjoy my work here." Roy said, smothering a chuckle at his words. What little work there was, he added to himself. Scrimgeour chuckled with just a hint of exasperation at his words.

"Well I apologise then. Seems we got our owls crossed. I was sure that Mr. Elric informed me of your wish to depart." He concluded, shaking his head. "Well I suppose we'll just let it slide the..." Scrimgeours words were lost on Roy. At the mention of that name, Roy had turned heel and was already running far from the two men, towards the entrance hall. Edward? Edward had gone behind his back and asked for him to leave. Roy was not usually one for anger, this time he was livid. Oh he was going to...

"Mr. Mustang!" Dumbledore cut in. He was not even bothering to hide his amusement this time round. "I hope you're not planning on hurting my Theory Professor now are you." He said after him. Roy slowed down for just a moment to grace the Headmaster with a reply.

"Oh no, Headmaster I wouldn't dream of it." He said pleasantly, a sickly sweet smile spreading across his lips and lacing its way into his tone. The sweetness did not last though, it dropped along with the smile as Roy revealed just how homicidal he was feeling at that moment. "I'm going to bloody murder him." He wretched and with that turned the corner, muttering darkly beneath his breath. The Minister stood in shock at the sudden change in character he had just witnessed.

"You knew about this didn't you?" Scrimgeour accused weakly. "We could have saved ourselves the time of a meeting." Dumbledore merely chuckled.

"Ah yes, but that way you would not have been able to witness the amazing passion of youth. Trust me, it is quite worth the watch, Minister."

* * *

Despite his history with them, the thestrals still managed to make Harry slightly uneasy. He eyed them cautiously as he heaved his trunk into the carriage and then followed suit. It was finally Christmas time and he and Ron would be spending it at the Burrow together. It was not entirely joyful. Harry knew that there would still be a shadow hanging over them. Sirius, Malfoy, Voldemort, Alphonse all of these matters were still in the air and in moments of peace Harry could not help but let his thoughts stray to them. However, just for these two weeks he would be able to get away from Alphonse and forget about his other problems. Well he hoped so.

"You know I liked it more when the elves carried our trunks around for us." Ron commented as he finally managed to inch his way into the carriage. Moments later, Hermione appeared behind him with a frown.

"Well you would, wouldn't you? I think its brilliant that they've given the poor, suffering creatures more freedom. It is not right what they are subjugated to." Hermione huffed. Harry sighed, really Ron should have seen that coming.

"Yeah you prefer to just let Al do it for you." Ron jabbed back resentfully.

"I really don't mind you know." Alphonse offered easily throwing Hermione's trunk into the carriage. "Besides I've always been taught that it's wrong to make a lady carry something." He recited as if rehersed. Hermione smiled at him gratefully, only causing Ron's expression to further darken. Harry took it upon himself to provide distraction.

"Al, its nice of you to see us off. You're spending Christmas here right?" He said, nudging Ron in hopes that he would get it back together. Alphonse nodded.

"Yeah Brother and I have got things to take care of here. I'm meeting him at the platform actually. Apparently he's signing you out instead of Hagrid for security reasons." He explained, eyes moving towards the scenery but Harry's gaze only seemed to sharpen.

"What things have you got to do?" He asked in what he hoped was a subtle manner. It caught Hermione and Ron's attention instantly. Both of them had heard from Harry what had happened between Alphonse and Malfoy at the Christmas party. Chances were that whatever the Elrics had to do during the holidays had something to do with that.

"Oh not much, we'd just like to get a bit of research done on the castle." Alphonse mumbled dismissively. The carriage lurched to a stop and they were all propelled forward. "Ah that was quick." He mused jumping off the carriage and reaching for Hermione's trunk. He lifted it with ease and began to saunter towards the platform "So anything particular planned once you get to the Burrow?"

"No nothing special." Ron replied, when Harry failed to answer. The opportunity had be missed but Alphonse had answered the question and there was really no sign that the boy had lied. Harry frowned. Maybe he was just overthinking this thing with Alphonse and Malfoy. At varying paces the group all lunged their suitcases onto the platform to be greeted with the warming sight of the Hogwarts Express. The comforting rumble of the engine could be heard and the vibrations felt beneath his feet. Harry smiled at the sight.

"Ah Harry, Ron and Hermione. That'll be you off the list." All four students turned to see Edward sauntering towards them, a small smile on his lips. Beside him floated a roll of parchment and a quill which seemed to be ticking the names off itself

"Hello Edward." Harry, Ron and Hermione greeted unanimously.

"That's still Professor Elric until you get on that train." He tutted, nodding a greeting towards Alphonse who waved. "I trust you'll be working hard on your alchemy over the holidays." Edward smirked. The trio grinned.

"Oh constantly, Professor." They replied.

"Yeah, holidays, who needs them?" Ron scoffed. Edward just shrugged in reply to his sarcasm.

"I'm sure you'll find time in between to relax." He provided, noticing the doubtful looks on Harry and Ron's faces. At this, Edward's voice took on a more serious note. "Really though, you three need it, especially you Harry. Take the time to recooperate during the holidays. I can quite honestly see the cogs in your brain overworking themselves."

"What, Edward, are you actually worried about me?" Harry grinned, "I didn't know you cared."

"Yeah, yeah, shut up and get on the train." Edward huffed, rolling his eyes at them. Harry smile widened as they wished the two brother's a Merry Christmas and hopped onto the train. Harry was last on. They would have gone further into the train to look for a compartment but just as they stepped on a furious roar resounded across the platform.

"EDWARD ELRIC!"

Edward stopped in his tracks. At the other end of the platform, striding towards him with wide steps and an angry expression was Roy Mustang. Oh and he sounded livid. Harry, Ron and Hermione abandoned their trunks and rushed back to the entrance to watch along with the rest of the school, what could have possibly caused such anger in their teacher. What they saw was a platform void of all but two people, Edward and Roy. All students had scattered onto the train by then. Most of them were peeking out the windows, even Alphonse seemed to have found somewhere to retreat to, however, that may have been for entirely different reasons. Either way, Roy and Edward were alone on the platform and the taller was slowly closing in on his smaller collegue. Roy was the first to speak.

"So I just bumped into the Minister." It was painfully obvious how calm the man was trying to come across as but judging by the tenseness of both his and Edward's shoulders, it was not working. "Apparently he thought I was due to transfer back to the Ministry after the break. Fancy that, I never even applied for the place." Roy stopped barely a step away from Edward. "So, I asked the Minister to whom I owed the pleasure of asking for me. Guess what! Apparently you single handedly kicked me out of here." Roy sneered, jabbing Edward in the chest.

"Ah, well, uh, about that," Edward laughed feebly, rocking back on his heels "I'm guessing you didn't want to then and cleared it up with the Minister." He continued. If it were even possible, Roy took another step towards him.

"That's not the point Edward." He ground out.

"O..oh what is the point?" Edward stammered, desperately trying to get his usual confidence back but it was not working. What the hell was wrong with him? He'd only ever been this useless around Winry.

"The point is that you went behind my back. You sneakily tried to get rid of me." Roy snapped. "This can't possibly be about the love potion. Do you really hate me that much?" He asked. Edward blinked in confusion. He may have been mistaken but that sounded like a hint of hurt in the other's voice.

"I don't hate you. Not at all," He replied with a hint of wonder because he saw it now. Roy was just as upset as Edward had been without him. Merlin, he was so stupid. They had been working well together, brilliantly even. The amount of times that Roy had subtlely supported Edward or even pulled him out of a miserable mood were countless and they'd barely known each other for a couple months. Edward realised all together that this man before him, this completely furious man, was the best thing he had next to Alphonse. Why the hell was he letting one stupid kiss ruin that?

"Then this is still about the love potion. I swear Edward, I was going to leave you to it and wait for you to get over it but this is too bloody much. I like it here. Hell, I even like working with you so please, get over it. It was just a stupid k—" Roy was cut short by hands tugging forcefully at the collar junction of his robe. He stumbled forward slightly and then there were lips against his as once more Roy was blindsided with a kiss from Edward Elric. This time, though, was different. Roy's reaction was immediate. His hand reached for the nape of Edward's neck as he drew him closer and firmed the kiss. Edward's hands remained clutched to Roy's front as their eyes fluttered shut and for a split second they lost themselves in one another. And then it was over. Edward pulled away from the taller man and loosened his grip on Roy.

"It was just a stupid kiss right?" Edward finished for him, a smile playing at his lips. "Well don't cause pointless drama over it Roy. We've got a job to do." He grinned and then with a final pat to Roy's shoulder, Edward walked around him and back towards the carriages where Alphonse was waiting.

Roy remained rooted to the spot. The anger had complately drained out of him only to be replaced by bewilderment. It was one thing to be ambushed by an Edward high on love potion, but an entirely different matter to be kissed by the perfectly sane Edward whom Roy had so missed. It was true. Roy could tell how much he had missed the blonde's company from the thirty seconds of conversation they had just shared and he could tell something else too. Now, despite what Edward liked to say, Roy was not actually thick. In fact, in most cases he was quite self aware and it was for that reason that sirens were going off in his head. Sirens that Roy was choosing to ignore, because he had felt a familiar rush from the kiss. The rush that came only when he was in too deep with somebody who was truly beginning to mean the world to him. However, at this point all Roy could pinpoint was the pleasant buzz that he had felt when kissing his collegue.

"Well, fuck."

The doors to the Hogwarts Express all slid shut, as students settled into their compartments and the train steamed off towards King's Cross for the Christmas holidays. It would not be for roughly another six months that Roy Mustang would be able to mark this as the exact moment that he began to fall head over heels for Edward Elric.

* * *

It seems really odd to me to be writing about Christmas in the middle of summer. Then again considering that I began this chapter in December, I probably deserve it...

Once again, I am terribly sorry for the wait but I have had exams and extra curricular activities up to my ears recently. Anyway I have graduated and am now a free woman! So expect more updates coming your way!


	20. A Hint of Luck

Chapter XX

Cherry Syndrome

The Burrow was as warm and welcoming as it always was for Harry and the swell of affection towards the Weasley family only seemed to have amplified over time. It may have been due to the crackling fireplace or the dazzling Christmas decorations that fluttered across the rooms putting themselves into place but Harry felt more comfortable than he had in a long time. The holiday feeling was definitely settling in now that he was relaxed into the Weasely lifestyle. For Christmas Eve, they had been more than fed. All of Ron's family and even Remus had been there. Harry had spent the entire evening wedged between Ron and Ginny as they chatted away happily at him. The only twinge he felt was at the absence of his Godfather. Since the tiny article in the Daily Prophet in September, Sirius had not been mentioned once in the papers. Deep down Harry had hoped that maybe Sirius had merely gone underground for a bit, that the Order had sent him on a special mission. With time, he had even managed to convinced himself that this were true. However, when Harry mentioned it to Remus, he could see it in his old professors eyes immediatly. Remus was just as unsettled as Harry and the worried spark in his dull, weary eyes gave it all away. No one had heard from Sirius in months.

Granted, the day had not begun as smoothly as it ended. A reporter from the Daily Prophet called Maximus Figglebun had managed to track him down at the Burrow and arrived unwelcomed, pleading for an interview with the Boy Who Lived. The topic of the article was to be Life After You Know Who. Apparently even though peace was reigning according to the wizarding public, they still wanted to know what Harry was up to. Now, there was little that made Harry more uncomfortable than being put in the spot light. One of the few thigns that did was actually having to lie whilst in the public eye. Because Voldermort was not dead and he had half the mind to tell Figglebun just that. However, when Harry explained this to Ron and Ginny in the brief moment he managed to pull them aside, they made sure to tell him that it was mad.

"Are you out of your mind? You can't tell them that. It'll cause panic. Which thank you for letting me know by the way." Ginny hissed, glancing towards the stout man in the middle of their living room. He must have been anxious. Figglebun was sat at the very edge of the seat, scratching the tragically balding part of his head.

"And that's if they believe you mate. What if we get a repeat of last year?" Ron asked and Harry had to clench his jaw in agreement. He did not want to have to live through the 'Boy Who Lies' once more, it had been exhausting.

"What are the chances they'd actually believe me this time?" He suggested hopefully.

"Not high."

"Of course."

So Harry had sighed and played along. On a whole, the interview ran smoothly but then once it was over Mrs Weasely let her kindness run away with her. She offered Figglebun dinner and he had keenly accepted most likely for the chance to see more of Harry. Either way, it meant that he sat uncomfortably throughout the entire meal, glancing inconspicuously towards him. But Harry was not about to let that ruin his mood. After dinner, Harry and Ron were sat in the living room having excused themselves from tea with the adults. It was then that the fireplace spouted into life, assuming the face of Hermione Granger.

"Wicked! When did you learn to do that." Ron gushed, grinning in awe at the crackling fire.

"Only recently, I'm trying it out but its incredibly tiring. So please, can we keep it to the point. Harry, before we were interrupted on the train, what was it you were going to tell us." Hermione replied and suddenly all focus was on Harry again. He had not wanted to discuss things this way. It would have been better if they were face to face. The only reason for this being that Harry hated feeling like he was going behind a friend's back but in this case it seemed that he had to.

"Ah right, I wanted to talk about Al... I think there's something going on..." Harry said hesitantly. "I think its to do with Malfoy."

Both of his friends groaned.

"Oh Harry, not this again."

"No hear me out, I overhead them the other night at Slughorn's party. After the rescue act, Al followed Malfoy out, and the way he talked to him, he definitely knew something." Harry rushed, wanting to get enough out for his friends to stop thinking he was being irrational. It seemed to work.

"What exactly did you hear?" Hermione asked over the fireplace connection and so he told them. Harry recounted every moment from the tense argument between Snape and Malfoy to the even more strained argument between Malfoy and Alphonse. He finished with a quick cover of the moment between Alphonse and his brother. Harry did not consider it important, Edward had not said anything in particular that had seemed suspicious nor did he do anything but comfort his brother. So Harry glossed over the details, only quickly pondering on how bizarre it was that in a matter of mere months he had come to trust Edward Elric entirely. Why the same did not apply to Alphonse he did not know. Harry waited patiently for Hermione and Ron to think everything over and come up with a reply.

"Well Snape and Malfoy are definitely shifty." Ron muttered first. "What kind of 'responsibility' do you think they were talking about?"

"That's just the problem, we have no way of knowing and for that matter, what was he doing out in the corridor anyway? Why was Alphonse helping him? Cause I don't believe for a minute that he actually invited him along." Hermione continued.

"Yeah and even if he had, no way would Malfoy have accepted it. The git's too proud for that." Ron returned and Harry was momentarily impressed with his insight.

"But what about Al? I didn't hear it all but what I heard Al say was very similar to what Snape said. You don't think he's in on it too?" Harry commented, a sense of dread settling over him. No, he could not handle the idea of a friend possibly betraying him again. Hermione shook her coal face, breathing heavily, the connection probably would not last much longer.

"No Harry, from what you've told us, it sounds like Alphonse is just as clueless as us. He's picked up on the things that we have, come on you even told him about the time we saw him in Knockturn Alley. Maybe he found some connections that we haven't made yet. My guess is that Alphonse is trying a more direct approach to stopping Malfoy. You've seen how close they can be at times. I would almost call them friends if it weren't for the fact that its Malfoy." Hermione reasoned, earning herself a nod of support from Ron. Harry felt his shoulders slack in just a hint of relief. It made sense, in a way. He could see that if Alphonse was anything like his brother, he would not bother using subtelty as an approach. Harry could almost feel a sense of ease wash over him until Ron slaughtered it with his next words.

"That does beg the question why he's so keen to help. I mean, when did they get so close?" He asked, probably not realising himself how terrible those words were. But it was not because of their meaning, no, rather because neither he nor Hermione could properly give Ron an answer.

"I don't know. It just seemed to happen. First time we saw them talk was just before Hogsmede right? Even then they seemed quite familiar." Hermione breathed, her voice cracking along with the flames. Harry shot up, his back straightening with a snap as something else sprung to mind.

"Yeah! Al knew that the locket thing was Malfoy too!"

"What?!"

"Ron, you weren't there but after the thing with Kaitie Brown, Al muttered something about Malfoy being an idiot. He must have known it was him." He gushed turning anxiously from Ron to Hermione then back again.

"Was it a guess?" Hermione asked doubtfully.

"Bloody good guess if that's true." Ron muttered with a grimace. Harry could tell that Ron was beginning to feel the same doubt and suspicion that had been festering away in himself. It made him feel bitter.

"I don't know, it still all sounds like guesswork to me. Assuming that Malfoy and Alphonse have been spending quite a bit of time together, and Malfoy did actually curse the locket, then it must have been in his possession at some point. That would have given Alphonse time to spot it and recognise it. It doesn't make him guilty." Hermione argued firmly. She obviously did not feel the same as them . For some reason it made Harry happy to see that not all of them had become cynics. However Ron saw it differently. He bristled at the conviction in Hermione's voice when she spoke about Alphonse.

"But if they're spending so much time together, it could just be that Al was in on it and was calling him an idiot for making a mistake." Ron suggested with a frown. Harry shook his head. He had seeded the suspicion but he found himself really wanting to go with Hermione on this one.

"No, I don't think..."

Harry was cut off by an ear-shattering explosion that ignited above their heads. Harry and Ron threw themselves to the ground as the entire house shook and rubble dropped from the ceiling. They buried Hermione's sharp questions in an avalanche of debris, first cutting off her voice and then the entire connection. Everything seemed to fall apart. The building caved in and furniture shook but then once the rubble had settled, Harry and Ron sprang to their feet, looking at one another with wide eyes and heavy breath.

"What the bloody hell was that?" Ron gasped, looking up to where the sound had come from. Then the house shook once more. Another explosion had gone off just by the window. This time Harry recognised them for what they were. They were curses.

"Its coming from outside!" He exclaimed, snatching his wand from his pocket and bounding to the front door. He thrust it open without thinking and looked around into the fields around them only illuminated by the flames ablaze on the roof of the Burrow. Harry took a few steps away from the doorframe so that he could catch proper sight of the caster of the curses destroying the house. The sky hung heavy with black clouds ahead, all rumbling with the small explosions that still seemed to be going off above his head. Harry was not listening to them. His entire attention was focused on the five dark tunnels of smoke, pulsing around the crooked corners of the house. He recognised them even before they dropped to the ground, pooling at the feet of five Death Eaters. Harry sensed the others in the house rushing towards the front door, wands in arms but by then it was already too late. Four of the Death Eaters had peeled off to set aflame the grassy fields surrounding them. The final Death Eater, Bellatrix Lestrange stood proudly in the centre baring her rotten teeth in a ghastly sneer.

"Oh Potter! Too long." She cackled, cocking both her head and her hip to the side, taunting him. "How's my cousin dearest? Oh wait, you wouldn't know, would you? How about I tell you then?"

"What?" Harry said, completely stunned. She could not possibly mean, "Sirius. Where is Sirius? What have you done with him?" He roared, charging towards her, without another thought. A satisfied smirk reached Bellatrix's face and she turned at a sprint towards the burning fields, parting the ring of flames just enough for Harry to slip through and it was not until Harry was alone in the dark, with nothing but Bellatrix's cackles reaching his ears that he stopped to curse his foolish stupidity. Bellatrix's words had made him see red. He could not have held back the rage if he tried, but now what? He was alone and could not apparate. The rest of the group were dueling the remaining five Death Eaters. Suddenly, Harry jolted back as someone's hand grasped around his arm. He turned in shock to see Ginny, gripping him tightly and gasping for breath. Behind her, stood the reporter a frown on his face and a fittingly, stout wand brandished in his hands. He looked scared but alert and Harry found himself surprised at the unexpected show of bravery. He must have been caught staring because moments later Figglebun was turned his way with a wry smile on his face.

"You lied to me Mr. Potter. Turns out your peace is occasionally disrupted." He chuckled and Harry grimaced in return.

"You jinxed me."

"Look out!"

However, Ginny's words were too late. The reporter and Harry were caught off guard, as a red jet of light shot through the darkness right at the reporter. He shrieked and writhed in pain as Harry and Ginny watched on helplessly. Harry was at a loss. He did not know what to do or where to look. There was too much dark and he could not take the chance at casting a spell to reveal themselves. All he could to was focus on the spot where the crucio curse was coming from. Behind him, Ginny tapped his shoulder once me and murmured something into his ear softly. Next, she was stepping away from them both, as she pointed her want towards the sky.

"Lumos Maximum!"

Everything burst into life and for one brief moment Harry saw it all; Bellatrix hidden behind the bushes, clutching at her momentarily blinded eyes; the reporter dropping to the ground and crawling back to the house as the curse was cut off and the green and red flashes in the background from the fierce battle at the doorstep of the Burrow. Harry grit his teeth. Ginny had saved them but now it was his turn. In the blink of an eye he reached Bellatrix, swiftly disarming her.

"Where is Sirius?" He growled, pointing his wand at her chest. He drove her back, through the waves of grass and overgrown crops, into the glade that held the Burrow. Around him, things grew quiet as all eyes, Death Eater and Order alike turned to look on. Bellatrix stumbled to the ground as she slowly backed away from him. Harry had her cornered but his hairs were still on end. He had goosebumps all over his skin. Something was not right. None of her allies were moving to help her and Bellatrix was not wearing the face of someone who had been defeated. In fact, she did not even seem ruffled.

"Oh Cousin Sissy, we took care of him. When we revived the Dark Lord. The Dark Lord made sure you'll never see him again. He really should not have got in the way."She drawled. Bellatrix dug her hands further into the wet mud, grasping them into fists so tight her knuckles paled. She cast her gaze over Harry's shoulder and suddenly she was laughing. "That's right! He's back!" It was unsettling and utterly insane but Harry felt transfixed as he watched this crazy woman roll gleefully around in the dirt cackling madly, repeating the words over and over again.

"He's alive! He's alive!"

"Stop it! What did you do to Sirius?" But Bellatrix did not answer. Her hands released the dirt beneath her and flung dust into Harry's eyes, blinding him and forcing him to gasp out in surprise. She seized the opportunity and leapt forward, back into the shelter of the fields around them. Screeching cackles and grating cheers of twisted joy swept up into the wind as one of the Death Eaters spun their wand arm around. Dust, dirt, debris and flames all flew into the air, following the path of the wand enveloping the four figures in a powerful tornado that ripped anything loose into itself. Harry lunged for Ginny instinctively, pulling them both to the ground, desperately holding them together. All they could hear were shouts and people grappling for safety before everything was torn away from above them. Harry clamped his eyes shut and clenched Ginny's hand, making sure that at least she remained safe.

When the wind settled, everything was gone. The wind howled recklessly through the bare structure of the Burrow rooftop as they all slowly rose to their feet. The flames had died down to a simmer, white ash snowed upon them, clinging to them in the darkness. They looked anxiously to the sky, towards their only source of light, the Dark Mark eerily illuminating the darkness.

* * *

"Edward are those school records?"

Neither Edward nor Alphonse spared Roy a glance as he carelessly dropped down into a seat opposite them the following day, dressed down in a simple shirt and loose trousers, holding nothing but a newspaper.

"Yes they are, we're doing some research on old students."

"On what? Their ancestry?" He asked incredulously. Edward did look at him then, glaring insolently.

"Yes, I'm trying to figure out whether stupidness runs in the family. Want me to check yours? Oh wait there's no nee—" Edward yelped and Roy chuckled spitefully at him. Alphonse had cut his brother off by viciously elbowing him in the side and glaring back in a way that only Edward could rival.

"Come now Edward, your students aren't that bad. You've got Miss. Granger and from what I've heard Mr. Potter is quite the whiz kid in potions. Won himself more than on prize in that class." Roy said, leaning back casually.

"Oh please, it was pure coincidence that won him that Liquid Luck potion." Edward scoffed, rolling his eyes. Roy just hummed his agreement, not particularly wanting to bicker about it. He had more important things at hand.

"So what are you up to?" He asked curiously. Edward and Alphonse glanced at one another. Roy sat by silently as the two seemed to have a conversation without a single word being uttered. It was odd really. He had always thought that sort of behaviour was reserved only for couples.

"We're looking into Tom Riddle's past."

On second thought, those two were much more functional than any couple. Roy glanced around at the stray library books riddled across the table. All of them were in some ways related to the castle of its former inhabitants save for a few of them. Between the mountains of Hogwarts related books were a select few that Roy recognised instantly as from the Restricted Section.

"Tom Riddle? You Know Who? Why?" He asked Alphonse, clearly the more cooperative of the two.

"Because we want to send him a basket of roses and some chocolate selections." Edward commented, raising his eyebrows pointedly at Roy. He rolled his eyes in reply.

"See now you're just being snide, why can't you just say that you're trying to investigate You Know Who's past for a potential weakness of his?" Roy refuted, tutting dramatically. Edward rolled his eyes.

"Because you've obviously already figured that one out. And for Merlin's sake, call him Voldemort. It won't kill you, you know?" Edward steamed, still frowning and now it was Alphonse's turn to roll his eyes. Any reasonable person would have thought that following the escapade on the train platform, Roy and Edward would have made some advancements in their relationship. This was what Alphonse, himself had expected however even now, Edward still loved to prove him wrong. The two had more or less reverted back to where they had been before the Moment That Must Not Be Named. Granted, the trust, the tricky friendship and the copious amounts of subconcious flirting were back but so was the bickering and the sniping. Alphonse was patient, but even he had his limits.

"So Mr. Mustang, how can we help you?" Alphonse asked, distracting the two who were pretty much about to go for one another's necks. Roy caught himself, sat back and cleared his throat.

"Well, its not so much that as I was wondering whether I could help you?" The Elrics stared. "I know what you are up to, well not all of it but I certainly have the gist of it. Let me help you." He said, looking sternly at the brothers. It did not take another silent discussion. The two boys nodded their agreement immediatly.

"Alright."

"Brilliant! What have you got then?"

Edward got to his feet, holding a book firmly in his grip. He walked around the table so that he was beside Roy and placed the book between them. He leaned down to point out the paragraph that the Brother's had just been reading.

"Ok so what we know so far is that Voldemort has essentially found a way to make himself survive death. He was been weakened to the point of death several times yet still he manages to come back. What we're trying to figure out is how." He explained. Roy hummed in understanding, letting his finger trace the page that Edward set before him.

"Horcruxes?" He repeated from the title and the two brother's nodded.

"Yes, its our best bet. That is what we suspect him of having used. However, there's a problem. The basics in creating horcrux are always the same. You even use the same ingredients. However there are small differences in the methods used for making them. This also means that there's different ways to destroy them." Edward continued, leaning forward and pointing out these varieties in the textbook. Roy ignored the feel of Edward's hand balancing gently on his shoulder and the prickle he felt agaisnt his skin from having him lean so close to him. Edward smelled curiously of parchment and aged books. Somehow, it did not surprise Roy at all. He decided he liked it.

"So we can't destroy these things unless we find out how You Know Wh- Voldemort made them. How do we find that out."

"Don't worry about that. We've got someone else on that. Our job is to find out as much as we possibly can on destroying them and also to find out as much as we can about Riddle. These horcruxes will be made from items in Riddle's life. We need to find anything significant that he may have turned into one."

"So, memories, souvenirs, that sort of thing. I see." Roy confirmed, glancing from the Dark Arts book to the Hogwarts book containing records of Tom Marvelo Riddle. "Well that seems to be a bit of a widescope."

Edward grimaced and ran a hand through his hair, ruffling the gold strands framing his face only to have them fall limply back into place. A tiny hint of the stress he was truly under breaking into his actions.

"I know but at this point, we have little else to work with. Other than this we-"

"Brother?"

"Yeah Al?"

"What the hell is this?" Edward and Roy glanced away from the book and up towards Alphonse. In his hands he held the Daily Prophet that Roy had brought to the table with him. He was gripping the paper by the top two corners so that the paper fell in his hand, proudly revealing the front page and its bold headline.

'You Know Who's Return'

Edward's jaw dropped a fraction as he grapple at the books before him, reaching for the paper. He tore it from his brother's hands and scanned the headlines.

"...The reign of peace to the Wizarding World was short lived as He Who Must Not Be Named's return was announced by his most faithful servants during an attack last night. The target of the assault was the home of a wizard family where Harry Potter, the Boy Who Lived was spending his holidays—ROY!"

Roy jumped at the sudden roar of his name. He looked with wide eyes at his colleague but Edward did not looked angry as much as he did utterly baffled.

"What?"

"You didn't think this worth mentioning?" Edward declared, shoving the paper in Roy's face. Roy leaned back, smiling sheepishly.

"I meant to. Got a bit sidetracked." He countered without much conviction but he lifted his hands up to sheild himself, just in case Edward decided to go for his throat.

"Sidetracked?" He repeated incredulously.

"Nevermind that brother, is he alright?" Alphonse asked, reaching for the paper once more. If anything terrible had happened they would have reported it in the article. Although, if something had gone wrong then it would only cause mass panic if people were to find out. Edward was evidently thinking along the same lines. Suddenly, he jumped to his feet and shut the book.

"Let's go and find out. You know where the Burrow is don't you, Al?" He concluded. Alphonse nodded deftly getting to his feet, scooping as many books as he could into his arms and heading off to return them to their places. Edward was much more effective about it. He reached for his wand and with one wordless flick, he had them all dancing back into place. Roy remained relaxed in his seat, watching Edward lazily.

"You're coming too."

Roy blinked dumbly.

"I am?"

"Yes."

Edward turned from his work, looking Roy square in the eyes, letting the remaining three books fall into place on their own. He leaned his left hand against the arm of Roy's chair, looming over him in a way that might have been intimidating if it were not Edward. He did not look angry but there was definitely intent in his actions because this time Edward did go for his throat. It was not a tight hold but Roy jolted in reaction instantly. Edward's fingers skirted lightly, teasingly around his adam's apple, skimming the skin gently. They brushed the front his neck for a moment, making goosebumps rise up to the touch of his nimble fingers. Roy's breath hitched. Then his hand was around the back of his neck, gripping him firmly.

"I'll kill you for this later."

Roy swallowed it down, smirking defiantly into Edward's eyes and leaning forwards, bringing them a breath together.

"Bit of an overreaction, don't you think?" He drawled, reaching for Edward but then he was gone, sauntering to the other side of the table. Roy tutted, frowning at Edward but he would be damned before he complain about the loss of contact. Instead, he sat back silently, not sulking but brooding until a throat was cleared behind them. Alphonse was walking towards them, dragging his feet and avoiding their gazes in a way that told Roy he must have seen precisely what just occured.

"Are you ready?" Alphonse asked. He glanced between the two who shrugged nonchalantly. Alphonse then grinned and shouldered the bag he had left on the back of his seat.

"How are we getting there?" Roy asked them, rising too and putting on his outdoor robe. A grin spread across Alphonse's face that had him instantly worried. It was a troublesome smirk when on his brother's face but on Alphonse's it was just plain unsettling.

"Don't look so scared Roy. We're flying." Edward scoffed and patted him on the back. Roy visibly relaxed. He had been on the Quidditch team during his time at Hogwarts. A broom, he could handle.

"Oh, that's alright then." He mused, following the two brothers out of the Library and into the snowy, morning air.

* * *

Mr. Weasley and Remus were the first out the house when three strangers landed on their doorstep. It was ludicrous in Molly's mind that they should have to be so careful , especially in their own homes however following the night before, the Order were not taking any risks. There were three men who landed on her doorstep. They nodded amicably towards her husband, Remus and then finally her. Molly was sheltered in the safety of the front door. The building had been magically repaired the night before, the moment they had recaptured their breath but the crackle of new magic was still in the air.

"How may I help you Gentlemen?" Remus questioned, obviously not trusting these men further than he could throw them.

"Oh, I'm Alphonse Elric, this is my brother Edward and his friend Roy." The two other men shifted at the mention but neither of them moved to say a word. Alphonse shook his head at their sheer stubborness then continued, "We're friends of Harry. May we see him?" He asked, adding his charming smile for extra measure. It did not work. Remus and Mr. Weasley steeled themselves, crossing their arms and frowning simultaneously.

"Sorry but Harry is not really up to seeing anyone..."

"Al? Ed?" It was Harry. He may have been shadowered by the entrance of the house but they recognised him and Edward was on him instantly. Chucking his broom aside, he barged past the two men trying miserably to erect a barrier and flew at the boy. Edward's hands were everywhere, checking him for any scratch or bruise that may have grazed him. Harry was fine, but the tickling from Edward's cross examination may just have done him in. He collapsed into laughter, trying to swat Edwards hands away.

"Edward! ED! Let me go! I'm fine!" He laughed, grabbing for the blonde's hands and pushing him off. Edward looked at him skeptically but nodded his approval anyway.

"and what about Ron? Is he alright? Is his sister alright? She's one of my brighter students. If anything happened to her so help me Merlin, I will..." Harry snorted.

"Ginny's fine. We're all ok." He reassured, shaking his head in sudden fits of uncontrollable laughter.

"Merlin, he's worse than Molly." Arthur muttered to himself but Alphonse caught it and chuckled, catching his attention. The man smiled broadly at him in sudden welcome. It seemed the suspicion was gone, no surprise considering the introduction Edward had given himself. Even Molly was looking on in approval as Edward seemed to smother Harry with questions and check ups. Alphonse grinned gratefully at them.

"Do you go to school with my son?" Arthur asked conversationally.

"Yes I do. We're in the same year. Those two are his teachers. Edward doubles as a personal tutor for them aswell. When we read about what happened we thought it would be better to check that everyone was fine." Alphonse explained, glancing towards his brother and Harry. Ron, Ginny and Roy had joined them now, grinning at Edward in pure amusement.

"Yes it was quite a shock but we reckon it was only a scare tactic." Remus explained. Alphonse hummed his agreement, having already discussed the matter with his brother on the way. It made the most sense, especially considering they were all aware that Voldemort was fixated on killing Harry personally. The attack had been nothing more than a publicity stunt. The Death Eaters had always loved making a show, after all. Alphonse was brought from his thoughts when Edward clapped his hands together loudly as he retreated from the house.

"Well, all seems well here. We just wanted to make sure. If you'll excuse us we have a lost of work to do." He said and reached down for his broom. The whine in protest was instant. None of the students said a word but Harry, Ginny and Ron followed him out with a frown. Mrs. Weasley chuckled at them then turned to Alphonse and Roy. It did not take much to see they were the two sociable ones of the group.

"You can't fly back to Hogwarts now. Stay for a bit. We're about to have Christmas Dinner." She offered warmly.

"Oh no we..." Edward grimaced in hesitation but Molly just clucked her tongue and gripped his arm tightly.

"Young man, I am not letting you leave without a full stomach. I am a mother. It's against my instincts." She chuckled, smiling at him. And with just that, with just the word 'mother' Edward melted in her grip. He let himself be tugged back into the Burrow home and Alphonse just followed quietly with an affectionate smile plastered to his face. When Alphonse, Edward, Harry and Roy were dropped into seats at the Weasely dinner table and forbidden to even offer any help, Harry recognised the look on their faces. Edward and Alphonse looked exactly the same as he had when he first entered the Weasely home. It was the shock of being faced with such a warm environment and above all, being faced with a family. The Elrics had told Harry of their time growing up. He knew that save for one another they had been just as lonely as he was for awhile. Especially in this world. In their own world they had friends however stepping through that gate had truly stranded them.

"You get used to it." Harry murmured to Alphonse above the bustle all around them and Alphonse just smiled.

"I don't think I ever will."

The rest of the night was wonderful. Mrs Weasley seemed to pull out all of the stops for Christmas Dinner. Harry could honestly not imagine a more filling or heartwarming meal. The food just kept coming and the conversation did not lull once. The topics were all over the place. They ranged from Ministry politics with Edward, Mr. Weasley and Remus to the benefits of pixies in exploding christmas crackers with Roy, Fred and George. Harry could not keep track nor did he at any point want to. There was beauty in the chaos and it was just that which Alphonse told him when the volume rose a couple of pitches too high. There was turkey, roast beef, roasted potatoes, mince pies, peas, carrots and he need not even cover desserts. It was everything that made a Christmas complete. Harry could barely contain the grin that cracked his lips so strongly that it twinged his jaw. So when Fred and George pushed him and Ginny under a mistletoe that glistened magically on the Weasley's front door, all Harry could do was laugh and sweep her into a kiss.

After dinner, Edward and Alphonse found Harry and Ron in their room playing Exploding Snap with a set of brand new playing cards. The two were deep into a game that looked like it was becoming quite competetive but dropped it immediatly to listen to the brothers. Harry had expected them to find him after dinner and he had a feeling he knew what they wanted to talk about.

"This isn't about Alchemy is it?" He asked but really, he need not have bothered.

"No, its Dumbledore. In view of recent events, he wants to know how things are coming with Slughorn. Have you got the memory yet?" Alphonse asked, seating himself on the floor with the two boys.

"No such luck." Harry said frowning. Ron sighed along with him.

"We've tried all sorts. Hell, we even tried pretending I was under a love potion so that Slughorn could help out and Harry could suck up to him." He complained, only scowling when Edward and Alphonse laughed at the plan's evident failure. They sombered up quickly and when Edward spoke his words were solem.

"Well you better think of something. I don't think I need to tell you that Voldemort is on the move. Without this memory we have no way of stopping him." He elaborated grimly.

"We know." Harry and Ron sighed again. They sat miserably in silence for a moment before Alphonse and Edward got to their feet.

"Well, we should go, have to fly back to Hogwarts. Merry Christmas you two." They concluded. Harry and Ron murmured their half-hearted replies and with that, they were out the door.

Edward and Alphonse bumped into Roy on the staircase on his way up to get them. It was Roy who had decided that it was time to leave and apparently he had already bid everyone downstairs goodbye. Roy was in a cheerful mood. He did not come from a particularly large family and so Christmas with him had always been quite quiet. It only became moreso when he moved out and began to spend them alone with wine or with women. Recently, the quiet celebrations had grown more frequent and so it was a welcome change to be at the heart of a family so large and noisy. Although, to be perfectly honest, the depressing faces of the Elric brothers certainly were not doing well in keeping his mood alive.

"Come on boys, why the glum faces? Its Christmas." He huffed, stepping outside into the night air. It was chilling, his breath hung in the air as he spoke and if there was one thing that Roy disliked, it was the cold. Rain was a close second. Edward and Alphonse sighed.

"Its Slughorn. Remember what we told you about Riddle and the Horcruxes. Well he learnt about them from Slughorn, he was his Potions teacher at the time. This means that we can find out how Voldemort made them if we get our hands on Slughorn's memory. That was Harry's job but so far he's having no luck with it." Edward muttered dejectedly. He kicked the ground beneath his feet and with a sigh, reached for his broomstick. However, before he could lift it, a hand closed over his. Edward frowned and traced the hand up the arm to its owner.

"What did you say?" Roy's eyes were narrowed and his head was tilted to the side, as if to make Edward's next words reach his words even faster.

"That was Harry's job. He's having no luck with it." Edward repeated deliberately, as if Roy were purposefully being slow but the man just laughed ridiculously and tugged Edward away from the broom and back into the house.

"Oh you stupid idiot. Alphonse go ahead, would you?" Roy yelled over his shoulder. Alphonse made a move to protest but by the time anything was said, Roy and Edward had already disappeared into the house and up the staircase. So with a sigh and an annoyed huff, he mounted his broom and took off into the night.

"Roy! What are you doing?" Edward yelped as he rushed to keep up with the man. He was bounding up the stairs without any thought or consideration for their differences in stride(this was in no way height related), causing Edward to trip on the steps.

"Hush, just listen." Roy laughed once more and burst into the boy's room, making both of them jump and throw exploding cards everywhere. "Harry, Ron about that memory, I know what you can do..."

But Edward did not hear the rest of it, because Roy let go of his wrist and crouched to eye level with his students. Edward watched suspiciously as Roy whispered something to the boys in hushed tones causing both of them to have exactly the same reaction. Their jaws dropped and their eyes widened. Now Edward really was curious. Roy got to his feet again and grinned broadly at the boys who seemed to have recovered with new found hope in their eyes.

"Oh that's brilliant." Ron gasped, looking at Roy with admiration and just a hint of disbelief.

"Got it?" Roy asked not bothering to wait for an answer. "Great, then let's go Ed, we have a flight to make." Next, he was bounding out the door and back down the steps. Edward did not waste a moment on repeating goodbyes. He was after his collegue in a heartbeat.

"What did you say to them?" He demanded, rushing down the steps to catch up with him. Roy did not stop. "Roy! What did you say?" He repeated more brashly this time, pulling the taller man round to face him. Roy halted his step just as he was stepping out the front door. They stood face to face in the doorway.

"Nothing Edward, you'll see once the holidays are over." He assured lightly. Edward growled threateningly. The bastard was obviously enjoying holding something over him. Well, Alphonse was not around this time to stop him from causing the man pain this time. Roy seemed to sense this. He rolled his eyes and lowered his voice to a whisper "Patience is a virtue you know?" He teased just as smugly. Edward frowned.

"I know, one of the many I don't possess." He ground out, still scowling. Roy just chuckled fondly.

"Is observance another one?" He asked and Edward's scowl seemed to take a break to allow confusion to take over.

"What?"

Roy's grin broadened but it was not as smug anymore. It was downright affectionate. And as Edward stared into his eyes with fascination, Roy took the moment to lean forward and press a tender kiss to the corner of Edward's mouth.

"Now we're two-one." He murmured, revelling in the speechless look on the blonde's face. "Merry Christmas, Edward."

Edward was left alone in the doorway, below the mistletoe, staring in utter astonishment at the back of his collegue as Roy mounted his broomstick and flew off the ground. Then the cogs in his brain and his bloodstream kicked into gear again. A violent blush washed over Edward's face, as he charged out after his collegue, hurtling pebbles, rocks, anything he could find at the flying man howling with laughter.

"You Bastard! Just because we've kissed does not mean you have a free pass!" He roared, effectively missing Roy everytime. The laughter did not die down. With a final, filthy curse Edward ran back to the house, grabbed his broom and pursued his friend off into the night.

Behind the new roof of the Burrow, a blonde emerged with an entirely unimpressed look on his face. It turned out even he could be wrong. Maybe certain things between those two had changed. Perhaps, they were moving forwards. Alphone smiled and looked to the sky as silently the snow began to fall.

* * *

Hehe this was fun but wooah it was hard work. Totally shippy by the way, even in a canon way. Who knows whats going on? I sure as hell don't.


End file.
